


Mein Leben

by teardrop193



Series: Life at It's Finest [3]
Category: Nagron - Fandom
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Multi
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-04-07
Updated: 2013-06-19
Packaged: 2017-12-07 20:10:44
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 54
Words: 69,812
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/752563
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/teardrop193/pseuds/teardrop193
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>Should be read following Meine Familie and Mein Herz.</p>
    </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Should be read following Meine Familie and Mein Herz.

“Come now,” Nasir sighed, his eyes falling over the little girl who stood before him, her little lip quivering as she looked at him, trying to convince him that she deserved what she had just asked for. “Go out and play.” It was his utmost wish not to baby any of his kids, and he managed it well for the most part, except every now and then. He would love them, treat them as they deserved but, never would he baby them and he certainly didn’t ever treat any of them with favoritism. Each of them was special in their own way, and his love for each was different but he never favored one above the others.

Eva was growing into a beautiful young woman, she was  fifteen now, a thought that scared him. Agron was already threatening to buy a gun, and in truth he couldn’t blame the man. She was gorgeous and he could only imagine that this was a fact that boys her age would notice. Yet he knew Eva, the young girl still had her moments when she wouldn’t get near men, where the thought alone scared her. Yet, she did not always act as such, and he trusted her judgment in such endeavors.

Derrick on the other hand was twelve, and would rather be reading a book than anything else. Gone where his days of getting into trouble for the fun of it as many other little boys loved to do. Yet Nasir couldn’t believe he had been with them almost ten years already. It was a thought that left him dumbfounded. It seemed like just yesterday they had received the little boy who was almost catatonic when they had taken him in.

Aerlia was beginning to excel in everything that she encountered, having turned five, the young girl was beginning to read and write, something that had nearly broken Agron. His baby girl didn’t need him anymore, she was so independent and she wanted so badly to do it herself, yet he was having a hard time allowing her that independence.

Lea was already three, yet she still thought she had Nasir wrapped around her little finger and tried hard to succeed at such a thing each time. Though, in truth she did have him wrapped around her fingers, but he was beginning to learn to tell her no, something she didn’t appreciate in the slightest.

Then there was the newest addition to the family, a sweet baby boy who held his father’s eyes and mother’s blonde hair. Yet he had quickly become Agron’s world, and Nasir could see why. It was in the sweet little dimples as the boy smiled when he was happy, he was already head strong and crawling around the house, keeping Agron on his toes, but like Duro, he had a habit of taking him to work with him to keep an eye on the little boy. Sweet little Austen, living up to the meaning of his name, magnificent in so many ways.

“Gee Nasir, you’re becoming such a bad ass, all she asked for was a cookie.” A smirk played with Crixius’ lips as he leaned against the kitchen counter. Of course he was only teasing but he wasn’t very used to Nasir being so tough on the kids.

“She just ate and if it wasn’t for that, she could have it.” Nasir grinned watching as the little girl went out to play with Alton, Annie and Aerlia out in the backyard.

“So where’s Aggie?” Crixius was used to being greeted by the German, despite their past differences. Yet, he hadn’t seen the man since he and Naevia had arrived, Duro and Kat had arrived not long after along with Saxa and Gannicus, yet there was no sign of Agron even still.

“Austen’s six month check up was today so he ran to that, he should be back soon, but I think that Austen got shots today so poor Agron will be nearly heartbroken. Poor little guy doesn’t take getting shots well, he cries and fusses, and we both know what a softie Agron is for that.” He realized what he had said though and stopped. Agron didn’t normally show the soft side around anyone other than him, and occasionally with Duro but otherwise few saw it, and the fact that he had just shared it with Crixius was probably a bad thing.

“I swear I wont tell him you told me.” Crixius laughed. “I figured that out awhile ago, he might talk a tough game and I’m pretty sure he would still kick my ass given reason but he’s less likely to do such a thing.”

Nasir nodded hearing the front door close, and Naevia’s squeal, he could only imagine that Agron was home with the little boy. Everyone’s reaction was to tell them what a sweet little boy he truly was, what a precious little guy, and Naevia was no different. “Speaking of the softie.” He heard Crixius laugh as he started down the hallway, but the laughter soon turned into a fit of laughter.

Agron’s eyebrow’s rose at Nasir as he set Austen’s carrier on the coffee table. “I’ll be back in a minute little guy, I’m going to go get a warm wash cloth, and hopefully it will help this time.” Though he had not done so with Aerlia nor Lea, Agron found himself talking to Austen as if the little boy might answer him. Yet, of course no answer came.

“Help with?” Kat’s opinion meant the world to him and he knew that, since she had been through med school and it wasn’t just some uneducated guess.

“Taking the swelling out of where he got his shot and make it hurt less. The Tylenol helps but he’s still a fussy little thing. It sucks that he’s in such pain and there’s nothing I can do for him.” Agron’s eyes fell upon the little boy whose eyes were red from crying. It was obvious that the doctor’s visit had not been easy on him either.


	2. Chapter 2

“Poor little guy.” Kat shook her head. “Sometimes Motrin helps better but really there isn’t much you can do, other than what you have and cuddle him and love him.”

Saxa pouted as her eyes fell upon the little boy, while she had easily given him up, she still had an attachment to him. Perhaps only as her nephew but she would still do anything that she could for him. “Here let me take him while you run and get a washcloth.”

Agron offered a nod settling the little boy within her arms, cringing as he let out a whimper. He was glad that he didn’t cry though, that was a start, he had cried through the appointment and most of the way home before he had finally quieted again.

“Hey little guy, Aunt Saxa’s got you.” She grinned, her finger tips playing with his little toes smiling as he pulled his feet away from her. “You gotta feel better soon little guy, you’re breaking daddy’s heart.”

Gannicus’ chin leaned against her shoulder a smile forming upon his lips as he watched her. “You want one of your own don’t you?” He knew that she wasn’t physically ready for such a thing just yet but he wished to know what was going on in her mind.

“I-I….” Saxa’s lips slipped against one another as she thought about it. “We will talk about this another time.” She didn’t regret what she had done for Agron, she had willingly given the child to him, and it was not as if she didn’t get to see him.

“Oh no, you cant do this to me. Every time there’s a new baby Naevia wants one too.” Crixius shook his head, eyes turning to the woman who was now glaring at him. “You were the one ally that I still had in this, you can’t desert me now.”

“You like the couch don’t you?” Kat grinned shaking her head. Despite their rough start, both Faith and Karlee were doing well and they were more than happy for that. Right now though, the little girls were settled in taking a nap.

“Hey, sleeping is kind of nice to begin with sometimes.” Duro grinned knowing that Crixius rarely slept to begin with. It was something that he worried about, yet he had not breached subject with the man yet.

Returning Agron happily scooped the little boy from Saxa’s arms. “Alright, daddies back little guy.”  Carefully he set the wash cloth against the little boy’s skin, heart breaking as he let out a scream. “Hey, hey, it’s ok baby boy. It hurts now, I know but it will feel better later on.” Cradling the little boy closer to him he allowed a sigh to slip between his lips, he hated to see him so upset. Yet it wasn’t long before Austen was asleep in his arms, happily sleeping within his daddies arms.

“He’s going to be a heartbreaker when he gets older.” Saxa grinned shaking her head as she watched the little boy. “He’s adorable now, I cant even imagine then.”

“I’m just hoping he doesn’t end up being a trouble maker like you.” Agron stuck his tongue out playfully as Nasir scooped the little boy from his arms to lay him within the crib, yet Agron’s lips moved to a pout. He wanted to hold the little boy, make sure that he was alright, and yet he knew that he should be sleeping and that made him feel a little better, he could only hope that he would be alright. “Thank you.” The words were quiet, and he could remember the many times that Nasir had complained of having to take one of the girls for their shots, the heart break it had caused and he had never quite believed him, yet he now understood.

“No problem.” Nasir’s eyes drifted over the little boy, their son. He was still adjusting to having a baby in the house again. Yet, he didn’t necessarily mind it, Eva was always willing to look after the young one and she was finally getting old enough that he would consider leaving one of her siblings with her at a time. The little boy was her favorite though, which had surprised him, since he was also the one who needed the most attention.

***

“How’s Austen?” Nasir leaned on his elbow looking up at Agron over the back of the couch. In truth he had fallen asleep laying there earlier in the night but the sound of Agron’s feet pitter pattering across the floor had caused him to stir.

“He’s doing alright.” Agron leaned against the back of the couch, hand rubbing over his eyes. “He’s asleep again. Poor little guy, I’m just hoping he’ll sleep through the night, he’s got a full tummy and a clean diaper, so with any hope maybe, just maybe.”

“You look tired Agron.” Nasir offered a weak smile as he looked up at the man. He knew that he wanted to be there for the young boy and yet, he needed to take care of him, he needed to sleep. “How about you get some sleep and I’ll get up with him if he should start to fuss. Take care of yourself and I’ll keep an eye on the kids.”

“Are you sure? I mean, after all, he’s just across the hall.” Eva had happily given her room up for one upstairs with a larger closet and that had allowed them to put Austen there. It was nice in the middle of the night when he fussed, he wasn’t far away, and it had been the only way that Nasir could convince Agron not to put the crib in their room. “I’ll take care of him, you look just as tired as I do right now.” Agron wouldn’t force such a duty on Nasir, after all the little boy was his son and he would take that responsibility. 


	3. Chapter 3

“Sleep Agron, it will be good for you.” Nasir offered a gentle pat to his arm.

“Thanks.” Agron held a hand out to him. “Come lay with me? You might be able to get some sleep before the little guy wakes up.”

***

“Shh…” Nasir sat rocking the tiny boy. Austen had awoken only a few minutes before. “Yea, daddy’s asleep but your dads got you little man.” A smile formed upon his lips as the little boy let out a yawn.

He had truly been a gift to them. Lea had always been such a fussy baby and normally Austen was the exact opposite. From the very first night that he had spent with them, he slept through the night alright and was normally so very mild mannered. It killed both Nasir and Agron to see him so upset.

“You’ve got to get feeling better baby boy.” Nasir’s lips pressed against the little boy’s forehead as he rocked him. He wasn’t running a fever, at least that was a start and he wasn’t sick either. The only symptoms he was showing was his discomfort which was normal, yet by morning, he would be alright.

It wasn’t long before Austen was asleep again within his arms. It was amazing how much like Agron the little boy really was. His emerald eyes were masked by his eyelids right now. Yet even Agron’s dimples could be seen when the tiny boy smiled. Carefully laying him within the crib, Nasir slipped back to bed, curling up against Agron and settling back in. His gentle giant, the one who made him who he was, there was no amount of I love yous that he could ever say in order to make it right. He had given up his heart to the man, their kids and he knew he would never get it back even if he wanted to.

***

“Daddy! Daddy!” Lea was happily bouncing on the bed between the two of them. While Eva was good about making sure that he kids ate breakfast and normally Agron was up to help her but this morning was different.

“Enough Lea.” Nasir didn’t even crack an eye to look at her.

Agron merely groaned, burying his face further into the pillow. Nasir’s finger tips ran over his shoulder realizing that he felt warm. “Come on baby girl, let’s leave daddy alone so he can sleep.” He figured that Agron had finally reached the point where he had exhausted himself and was now sick.

“But…” The little girl pouted nor understanding what he was getting at.

“Come on kiddo. Let’s get you something to eat. Your sister is probably trying to figure out where you disappeared to.” Nasir pushed himself from the bed, starting after her.

“Ok daddy.” Scampering from the bed, the little girl went back to the kitchen, not seeming to notice that Nasir wasn’t following.

Leaning his lips, he pressed a kiss to Agron’s cheek. “You’re feeling like hell again aren’t you?” He knew the answer well enough but found it appropriate to ask.

“Yea, I’m pretty sure that if a train hit me, I’d feel better.” A shiver slipped down his back. “Oh, don’t forget Crixius is taking Eva, Duro wants to steal Lea and Aerlia and Saxa is going to grab Derrick.”

“Yup, now go to sleep. When I get them all off to where they’re going I’ll come to visit again.” Nasir pulled the blankets up over him once more. It seemed as though Agron was always getting sick because he wouldn’t take care of himself. Yet, Nasir would take care of him now.

“I love you Nasir.” Agron mumbled, face turning up to look at him.

“Love you.”

***

“Little one doesn’t mind the boys. She’s not bothered.” Nasir could only imagine that she was referring to Sibyl. While Saxa had not always like her, she was growing used to having her around.

“Alright, enjoy then. I’ve got Aggy here sick so he’ll be whiney today.” Nasir offered a smile. “You could stay if you want.”

“No thanks.” Saxa shook her head. “He’s too much of a baby for me.”

“He’ll sleep most of the day as long as he doesn’t hear Austen. If he hears him though, all bets are off.” IT was true. If the little boy fussed Agron would insist that he needed to take care of him, yet Nasir was just as capable of doing it. Though he would have to argue with Agron in order to get that point across to him.

“Good Luck. I’m going home to try and get Little One to cooperate long enough to clean out the spare room for her to stay in.” Rolling her eyes she allowed them to turn to the boys. “Ready?”

“Yup.” Both of the boys answered offering a nod as they looked at her.

“Be good!” Nasir offered after them before he pushed the door shut, turning on his heels he slipped down the hallway and into their room again.

He froze in the doorway, eyes running over Agron as he did. The man lay shaking under the blankets. Moving to the closet Nasir pushed himself up on his tip toes to pull down another blanket for him. Pulling it down, he moved to the bedside, carefully covering Agron with it before he sat on his side of the bed.

Austen was sleeping peacefully, for now at least but it was better than him being sick as well. Though, Nasir figured that it would happen yet.

“You enjoy sitting there watching me?” Agron’s voice was hoarse as he spoke, which made Nasir cringe. “Everyone gone?”

“Yea, and Austen is asleep in his crib. You sound like hell, you hungry? I’ll make you some soup or something.” With as often as Aerlia was sick as of late, Nasir had started freezing soups in order to have them on hand when something like this happened.

“Yea, that sounds good. I just can’t get warm, no matter how hard I try.” A sigh slipped between his lips, eyes opening to look at Nasir.

“You’re running a temp Aggy.” Leaning down he pressed a gentle kiss to the man’s cheek. “We both know that you aren’t feeling good because you don’t take care of yourself.” Nasir hated to lecture but he knew that if he couldn’t get through to him, he wouldn’t get better, and even if he did, this would only happen again.

“I know, I know.” Agron let a sigh slip between his lips as he looked at the man. “Can I get that soup?” His eyes were almost pleading. “My throat feels like someone took sand paper to it.” HE tried his hardest not to whimper, it hurt to swallow, his throat was raw. 


	4. Chapter 4

“Yea, I’ll get it warmed up for you. Would you like tea in the mean time?” He knew that it might take a little while and felt bad.

“Yea, that sounds like a great idea.” Agron offered a smile as he looked up at him. He knew that Nasir was trying to be helpful, yet there was nothing that he could do to make it go away, and he knew that would both Nasir, so he allowed him to do little things such as this to ease the little man’s mind.

“Alright, in the mean time, stay in bed and don’t talk. That’ll help some.” He knew that it would help a little but it wouldn’t heal him, the only thing that would do that was time and sleep like he really needed. “Duro and Kat are going to keep Lea and Aerlia for a few days so that you can get feeling better and Aerie wont end up sick.”

“His way of trying to make our childhood up to me.” Agron croaked, cringing as he swallowed again. It was true that Agron had taken care of the boy then but the man that stood before him so many years before surprised him. Duro had always gotten the brunt of their father, it didn’t matter if it was Agron who pissed him off or not, he always beat Duro.

There was one time in particular that Agron remembered; their father had put Duro in the hospital. He’d damn near almost killed him; the poor boy had only been five, Agron being all of eight. Yet, there were many days where Agron refused to leave his little brother’s side, other than to go to school. He’d never forget the feeling of almost loosing his little brother, and yet Duro still stood before him, just as happy and goofy as he’d always been. No matter how hard life had gotten, Duro had always held onto that, and he had tried his hardest to make sure that Agron smiled at least once a day and yet, they had been such hard times.

“Something tells me that you wouldn’t allow him to even start to try to make it up to you because you don’t feel like you did anything that needed making up for.” A smile played with his lips as he eyed Agron, knowing that he was probably shocking the man from memories. “You want help into the living room or are you more comfortable here?”

“I’m fine here.” Agron offered a smile trying to adjust to the feeling of glass in his throat but it wasn’t as easy as it sounded.

“Alright, I’ll get the soup on and make you some tea.” Pushing himself from the bed, Nasir started for the door, pausing to look back at him. “If Austen cries, you are not to leave bed do you understand me? I will take care of him, you don’t need to over exert yourself, it’ll only make you feel worse and take you longer to get better.”

Agron nodded, settling back against the pillows. Normally he would argue but he didn’t feel up to it today. In fact he knew that Nasir was probably right this time, maybe it was time to start taking care of himself instead of trying to take care of everyone else. Nasir only had Austen right now, so it wasn’t as if he would be overwhelmed with taking care of the kids. He needed to get better, he knew that it was hell on Aerlia being away and yet right now it was the best thing for her. Duro would keep her safe, and she would have her cousins and sister to play with, besides Eva was next door if anything came up and Duro was well aware that she knew almost everything that could possibly be needed to take care of the little girl.

“Well, you aren’t arguing this time, that’s a start at least.” A grin spread across Nasir’s lips as he slipped out of the room heading for the kitchen. He returned a few minutes later with the cup of tea setting it on the night stand. “That should help with your throat.” Pressing a kiss to Agron’s forehead he offered a tiny smile. “Get to feeling better hey Agron? I hate seeing you like this, it kills me seeing you like this knowing there’s nothing I can do for you.” It took a lot for him to admit that but he needed to, he absolutely needed Agron to hear him say it, to think about the words and for once to consider what was really going on.

Taking a sip from the cup, he swallowed, regretting the fact that he did. It hurt but Nasir was right, it did help to make the pain a little less painful. “I know Nasir, and I’m sorry.” His voice was less hoarse as he spoke, though he was still freezing. “I did this to myself, and I know how hard it is on you, and the kids. I swear, I’ll start taking better care of myself.” For the first time it really sank in that if he didn’t start taking care of himself, he really might have something happen to him, and that was a scary thought. He couldn’t leave Nasir to take care of the kids all by himself and he wanted to see Austen grow up, be a real part of the boys life as well as the rest of the kids.

“Soups on, you could take a nap if you want, I’ll wake you when it’s done.”

Agron took a sip from the cup in front of him. “No, I’m fine for now, would you hand me the remote though? And maybe consider cuddling?” He wanted so badly just to curl up with Nasir, not only for the extra body heat but because they so rarely got to do so.


	5. Chapter 5

“Yea, that sounds kind of nice.” Nasir grinned. “Just let me check on Austen and then I’ll be back.” Tossing the remote onto the bed, Nasir turned heading across the hall. If something was wrong they would know it, as Austen would cry or fuss but if he was happy, it was no unusual for him to happily lay there, occasionally playing with his toes or finding some other way to entertain himself.

This was the case this afternoon as well. The little boy was playing with his tiny little toes, cooing to himself. “Hey little guy.” Scooping the boy from where he lay, Nasir held him close to him. “You want to go and lay with daddy? I bet that you would make him feel a little better.” He knew how Agron adored the little boy and hoped that it would make him feel a little better.

While he hated the thought of the little boy getting sick, he also knew that chances were that he had already been exposed. Slipping back across the hall Nasir grinned as Agron’s eyes lit up seeing the little boy. “Was he good for you last night?” He hated to admit to it but once his head had hit the pillow, he didn’t remember anything until this morning when Lea jumped on the bed.

“Yea, he fussed a little bit but we rocked and then he was alright the rest of the night.” Settling in on the bed beside Agron, Nasir wasn’t surprised when the man scooped the little boy from his arms.

“Sorry, I didn’t hear him last night or I’d have gotten up with him.” Adjusting Austen he held an arm out to Nasir waiting for him to curl up against him, this was his family or part of it anyways.

“Don’t worry about it.” Nasir moved so that he rested against his shoulder, fingers moving to tickle at Austen’s little toes. “It was nice, I kind of missed it, it’s been forever since Lea would have even considered rocking with me. He might be your son but that doesn’t mean that I won’t take care of him.”

His words surprised Agron as he spoke them. How many times had Nasir preached to him that Lea was not his daughter, but their daughter, so to hear his say his son confused him. “Our, Our son.” The words were but a whisper as he nuzzled at Nasir’s hair; the little boy in his arms happily babbling to whomever would listen. “I took you as my husband many years ago, I told you then, what is mine is yours, until you decide that you don’t want it anymore. Y-you haven’t changed your mind have you?”

“No, god no.” Nasir pressed his lips against Agron’s cheek. “I just…I know how badly you wanted this and to take it from you didn’t seem right.”

“I’ll share.” The first smile of the day spread across Agron’s lips as he looked at the little boy and then to Nasir again. “I know that you have wanted another boy since Derrick and sometimes I think you’ve wanted it more than I ever could.”

“Only if you’re willing to share.” Nasir offered, his fingers tips rubbing over Austen’s tiny hand. Pausing as the little boy’s hand closed around his finger, a happy grin, dimples showing, Nasir couldn’t help but laugh. “I guess he doesn’t mind that we intend to share either.”

“Good. It’s decided then, and why didn’t you say something before about wanting to rock and cuddle. I never meant to leave you out, God am I sorry for that baby.” His heart broke, how had he missed this? How had he not known that something wasn’t right with Nasir?

“Hey, it’s ok.” Nasir hadn’t meant to upset him; he had only made a statement. He’d never intended for it to make Agron so upset. “I know it’s not easy to do. I’ve been there remember?”

There was a long silence between them as they were both lost in thought about life. They’d been together going on fifteen years, it was so hard to imagine. Together they had grown into who they really were, and Nasir had stood beside Agron as he finished his degree and was ready to start into life.

He’d never forget the first time he met Nasir, he was simply looking for a job and yet in that moment their lives had changed so drastically.

“I’m going to go and check on the soup and warm up a bottle for him. I’m sure he’s starting to get hungry.” Nasir was insistent about Agron not leaving bed for much other than to go to the living room.

“K, we’ll be here when you get back.” Moving his arm to release Nasir from it Agron offered a small smile. He still felt bad, for not being able to tell that something was wrong with Nasir, and he had been selfish, that bothered him. His eyes turned to the little boy in his arms. “What are we going to do huh little guy?” His voice was quiet, not wanting Nasir to hear because he knew that he would swear that nothing was wrong and that he had done nothing wrong. However Agron felt different about this situation.

As if in response Austen began babbling away in his arms, little feet just a going as he did.

“Really? Is that what you think we should do?” Both Crixius and Gannicus had mocked him for his baby talk and how someone who was as muscular and large shouldn’t be so feminine yet it was all in good fun.

 It wasn’t long before Nasir was returning to the bedroom bottle in hand. “Alright come here little buddy.” Carefully he took him from Agron’s arms, ignoring the pout that now drifted over Agron’s lips.

“What’s that for?” He couldn’t help laughing as the little boy began to happily drink from the bottle when offered it.

“Oh you know. We were cuddling and you took him away.” Of course Agron was only teasing but he was waiting for Nasir to see it.


	6. Chapter 6

“Well I want to cuddle now.” Nasir offered a grin. He knew that Agron had taken shit over the past few months. From doctors and parents he didn’t even know and all because they’d decided on formula feeding. It seemed like the most reasonable option in this situation, after all it should be their decision and yet many didn’t see that as true, often times calling it neglect or abuse.

Though Nasir had to give Agron credit, he hadn’t hit or attacked anyone yet for it. They both knew well enough that they would never neglect one of their children, not intentionally and when it came to the word abuse, Agron was incredibly touchy. Rightfully so of course after what his father had done to them but touchy still none the less. All he wanted to do was see him happy.

“Fine, I’ll see if I can’t find something on TV then.” Agron knew well that he was teasing in return yet he would play along.

“Well, I suppose you could come cuddle with us if you’d like.” Nasir seemed to be pondering it for a moment before he let his eyes fall upon Agron.

“Well I’m in then.” Nasir moved so that Agron could join them.

“How was the appointment yesterday?” Nasir knew that it had been yesterday but with everything else that had happened they hadn’t gotten to talk about it.

“Went well. Our little guys becoming a chunky little monkey.” Agron beamed. It was just the way that Agron was about Austen. He was his baby boy and there was nothing about the experience that didn’t make him incredibly proud. Yet every time he did, his face seemed to light up and there was so much that he did that he didn’t realize.

The week before Chadra had stopped to see Nasir and in the end she had ended up looking through a photo album of the little boy. Of course Chadra hadn’t minded but it had been in that moment that Nasir realized though what Agron had been talking about when Lea was born. He had told him that he would nearly force a person to listen, even though it wasn’t a bad thing but Agron wasn’t nearly as bad.

***

 Nasir crept quietly into the living room, a smile forming on his lips as he looked at Agron who was asleep on the couch. Sweet little Austen was asleep in his crib once again and Nasir was kind of glad for that fact. He loved the little boy but he wanted to cuddle, to love, to be with Agron and make him feel better.

Sitting at the end of the couch, his finger tips ran over Agron’s foot. He was trying so hard not to scare him awake but all he wanted was to make sure that he was alright.

“Hmmmm?” Agron adjusted on the couch cracking an eye to look at him. “What’s up Nasir?” He felt better than he had earlier but he was still feeling miserable.

“Nothing, I just wanted to make sure that you were alright.” His fingers worked in circles on Agron ankle trying his hardest not to worry. He knew that Agron would be fine, he would get better and everything would be good again, yet this was hard for him. It wasn’t as bad as it had been so many years ago where he needed to call Kat to make everything better but he was still a worrier, nothing would ever change that.

“Yea, I feel alright.” Agron offered a small smile as he looked at him, before he held his arms out to him waiting for him to come lay with him. “I mean a little cold but I feel alright.” Maybe he was lying a little bit but he also knew that  Nasir was a worrier and nothing could change that so he did what he could to reassure him.

Moving to lay beside him Nasir settled his head against his shoulder offering a contented sigh as he closed his eyes. This was what he wanted, what he had been waiting for and now he had it. “I’ve missed this.”

“I know, and I’m sorry. We need to make more us time. I mean we have enough friends that will take the kids and all. I’m pretty sure had you asked, Saxa probably would have taken Austen too. I think she misses him.” Agron felt bad for the woman, she was like his sister and there was so much that he would do for her. “Her and Gannicus have been talking about a little one.”

“Are you sure she didn’t mean Sibyl?” He knew that this was also what she called the other woman.

“Nah, I talked to him earlier. He was at the shop because it was either that or listen to Sibyl and Saxa.” Agron shook his head. “It’s kind of funny really, she’s the one who asked her to come live with them and yet she’s pissed about it. I love Saxa, really I do but sometimes I just don’t understand her.” It was true, Agron would do anything for Saxa but it was true, he didn’t understand why she was the way that she was.

“We talked about that actually when she came to get Derrick earlier while you were asleep. She loves him, she wants him to be happy and in honesty, she enjoys having Sibyl around but sometimes she doesn’t enjoy sharing with her. I actually heard her say that she liked Sibyl this morning, it sound nuts but that’s the way that it is for them. I think more than anything she’s frustrated with Sibyl right now. You know how Saxa is compared to Sibyl, she’s very intense and it’s hard for her to deal with someone who is that meek and quiet. Maybe living together will help them both out.” Nasir stopped to think about it for a minute, there had to be some good to come of this situation. 


	7. Chapter 7

“They’ll figure it out eventually.” Agron wouldn’t interfere in their life, yet he wondered if it wasn’t a train wreck waiting to happen.

Sibyl was meek and mile like Melitta had once been. Yet Gannicus had sworn that Melitta had deserved better. Yet Sibyl seemed to make him happy, which was something that he would not argue with, his happiness was all that he was interested in.

“Have I told you lately just how amazing you are?” Nasir grinned, yanking Agron from his thoughts. It wasn’t rare to hear Nasir compliment him but he was far from himself today. His normally pale cheeks flushed red in fever, nose just as raw from blowing it and his normally bright eyes dulled and glazed overlooking. Yet this compliment made him feel better, though he knew better than to think that Nasir ever thought anything less of him.

“Not when I’ve looked as close to hell as I do right now, no.” Pulling the blanket tighter around himself he sighed, eyes beginning to close again. “I think if I could just keep my eyes open I’d be alright.” He hated feeling so helpless, so tired, so annoyed at how he felt. He hated being sick, leaving all the responsibilities to fall to Nasir and yet the tiny man never once seemed to complain about it, he willingly took on the duties and this was where they always seemed to end up.

“Get some sleep then Aggie. There’s as reason that you’re tired. I’m sure it probably has something to do with the reason that you’re sick and all.” Gently Nasir pressed his lips to Agron’s. “Sleep Love.”

“Only if you’ll stay with me.” Agron was already adjusting to make room for Nasir to curl up under the blanket with him. “Something tells me you could use a nap as well.”

“You’re worse than the kids are.” Nasir laughed softly.

“Hey Aggy?” The door open caused him to raise his head but realizing it to be Duro he was worried.

“Yea Duro?” His voice was hoarse but he didn’t feel like fighting with it to get it back, after all it would only make his throat hurt worse.

“Lea’s fussing. Something about her blankey.” His eyes drifted over his brother. “Anyone mention that you look like hell?” Leave it to Duro he supposed to tell him exactly what he was thinking, even if he wasn’t asked for his opinion.

“I thought I packed it for her.” Nasir sighed pushing himself from the bed heading down the hallway to the girl’s room.

“And yes I know I look like hell, thanks for mentioning it.” Agron growled his eyes falling on his brother before he shook his head. “I feel like hell too. Hell, I even sound like it.”

“Start taking care of yourself and maybe you wouldn’t feel like this as often as you do.” Duro loved his brother, he would do anything for him, but part of that love was also telling him off when he did things like this.

“I was just telling him that earlier.” Nasir offered a smirk as he came back with the blanket. “Here’s her blanket. Sorry, I could have sworn I put it in the bag for her.” While the little girl wasn’t as insistent about sleeping with it at home, when she left the house she had to have her blanket or else the little girl would throw a fit.

“No problem. I was out anyways and I figured I should stop and see how the big baby was anyways. Anything we can do?” Duro hadn’t forgotten how Agron and Nasir had helped when Faith and Karlee were born.

“Nah, I’ve got everything handled here.” Nasir settled back in beside Agron, his head coming to rest upon his shoulder. It was a gesture that didn’t even seem to faze the younger brother. In this aspect, Agron admired his baby brother, after all so many others’ siblings would fuss over how they didn’t want to see such things, and while he wasn’t interested in more intimate displays of their affection, the cuddling and making out had never bothered him.

“Alright, if you need me, give a call.” Duro shook his head a smile forming on his lips. “And take care of the big baby.” His eyes fell upon his brother who was asleep now, having given up the fight to stay awake.

“You know that I will.” Nasir offered as he pulled the blanket up over Agron, before he leaned to press a kiss to his forehead. His eyes turned up once more to where the younger of the Germans had once stood but he was gone, the only sound, the front door quietly shutting after him.

When Duro had first moved out it had been hell on the two of them. After the ten years that they had spent depending on each other, being the only support that the other had and suddenly they were no longer living together. Yet it seemed that Duro had been there all the time for a long while. However, they had eventually adjusted well enough to living separately finally, in the earlier days they never would have gotten Duro out so soon with Agron sick.

Curling up beside the man he pulled the blanket over himself, before he cuddled up against him. Leaning up he pressed a kiss to Agron’s cheek. “Mmmm.” Agron’s voice was quiet, though he was still asleep, he surfaced enough that he could express an emotion in response to the touch.

Wrapping him within his arms, Nasir finally fell asleep, though he felt awkward because of the size difference. Yet with Agron he was always comfortable, he wanted so badly to make the man feel better, and if this was how he could do it, then he would do so.


	8. Chapter 8

***

“Shhhhh, daddy’s got you.” Agron cradled the little boy within his arms. Nasir was still asleep on the couch, obviously he had been incredibly tired because Agron had crawled out of his arms and gotten off the couch without waking him, and the little boy crying hadn’t woken him either.

Despite the fact that he really didn’t feel very well, he had come to see why he was fussing. In truth, sitting here rocking with the little boy in the chair, he felt better than he ever had earlier in the day.

“Yea, that’s better.” Agron offered a smile, brushing his fingers across the little boys cheeks brushing away the tears, glad to see that he had stopped crying. “You know I hate it when you cry baby boy.” He leaned to press a kiss to Austen’s forehead. “How about we figure out what daddy had frozen and we’ll see if we cant put something in the oven so that he can take a break. Though Agron couldn’t remember the last time that Nasir was sick yet he knew that if Nasir didn’t take care of himself as he had insisted that Agron should then, he too would be laid up in bed. Besides with as many meals as Nasir kept in the freezer, it wasn’t as if he really had to cook.

Over time Agron was beginning to adapt to being able to cook, and he did, he just preferred not to unless he had to. For such instances, Nasir kept meals frozen so that if they had a night where something came up, Eva was watching one of the kids or neither of them felt like cooking, all that needed to be done was to warm it up in the oven and they were done. The man was ingenious and he was sure that it was part of the reason that he had fallen for Nasir, yet there was so much more that he loved too.

***

“Y-you remembered.” Nasir stammered his lips pressing together as he looked at Agron.

“Of course I did, how could I possibly forget that your favorite was Homemade Macaroni and Cheese.” As Agron had been looking through the freezer he’d decided that nothing in it sounded even remotely good and had decided instead on making something. While flipping through the recipes that Nasir and Eva had acquired over the last few years, he’d found the one for homemade macaroni and cheese and decided that sounded really good, and of course it helped that it was Nasir’s favorite and since Nasir didn’t often make it, he saw it appropriate to spoil him.

“And you even remembered to put ham in it. What would I do without you?” Nasir laughed sitting across from him at the table. “You know, it seems so strange to not have the kids here at the table with us.” While he loved time without them, he missed them all the same. They had become the center of his world along with Agron’s and that was something that he would never regret, so this was strange for both of them.

“I know, it’ll be even weirder not reading the girls a bedtime story tonight before they slip off into a peaceful sleep.” This was perhaps his favorite part of the night and yet tonight he would miss it more than anything, though knowing that he was in the safe hands of his brother and sister in law made him feel better. “Or fighting with Eva to get her off the phone with Kia and Amelia to go to sleep.”

“Oh just because she’s off the phone doesn’t mean that she isn’t still talking to them.” Nasir shook his head. “She’s figured out text messaging now too. Soon she’ll be driving, god what happened to that little girl that we brought home?”

“She grew up. Now she’s a beautiful young woman who I’m sure tonight has Naevia pulling out her hair.” He couldn’t help laughing trying to picture how the woman was dealing with three teenage girls for the night. It wasn’t going to be as easy as it sounded. Yet she would get through it, that he knew, for she had proven it before.

“As Derrick and the boys are probably getting to Saxa and Gannicus.” Nasir’s eyes turned up to look at him, laughing as he did. “And maybe even Sibyl.” He stopped to think about it for a minute and shook his head. The boys might be the least of the conflict tonight, or perhaps the two women were now the best of friends, while he thought that that was probably a long shot, it was still possible.

“Sounds like Duro got it easiest with Lea and Aerlia.” Agron couldn’t help the laughter that bubbled within. He knew that his brother had five little girls running around the house and yet, he figured that he would be able to handle it. There was little that Duro couldn’t handle, no matter what it was. They had both been through hell and nothing compared to it no matter what the situation was.

“Oh I don’t know about that, those little girls are a pretty big handful sometimes.” Nasir was just beginning to relax. While he kept expecting the kids to come running in or one of the kids to start to fuss, that was not about to happen. None of them were here other than Austen who was happily bouncing away in his bouncy saucer, playing with the little toys as he investigated what he could get his hands on. He certainly wasn’t about to fuss as the smile upon his lips showed and the happy babbling that he continued.

“Oh come now, they get into trouble all the time.” He knew that it wasn’t a bad thing, they were always getting into something but it was usually because they were trying to investigate the world around them and Agron would never discourage that. No, he would never tell them not to do that. 


	9. Chapter 9

“Duro, Gannicus and I have been talking…” Agron had been meaning to talk about Nasir about this for a long time and yet the time hadn’t ever seemed right for it.

“Oh?” Setting his fork down with a clank Nasir couldn’t help being worried. When it came to the three of them talking it never meant good things, but the fact that Agron was breeching the subject with him, worried him even more.

  “Hey, it’s a good thing, I swear.” Setting his hand on top of Nasir’s he waited a minute to continue on. “I know it’s been hard for you lately. You’ve let Eva and Derrick to go back to school, Aery’s going as well, and soon so will Lea. Would you consider coming back to work with us? I know it’d not your dream but, we’d love to have you back if so.”

With us. The words were easy to speak, yet the left Nasir taken back. He hadn’t said for us, he had said with us. “I-i…” Nasir was trying hard to try to answer and yet the words just wouldn’t come for him.

“I mean what I said Nasir.” Agron had anticipated this reaction from him. “We would like to take you in as a partner. Things have been hell lately, we could someone like you.”

“But you have Duro and Gannicus.” Nasir was still having trouble comprehending this.

“We do, but Duro hates dealing with people, his employee relations such and Ganny, well, he’s just a softie at heart and that’s never a good combination.” For them it had been an easy decision to make.

“But what about Austen?” There was so much to consider before making this decision.

“He’ll be fine. We can work it out so that one of us is here with him. I just…I thought that you might enjoy it.” Agron knew that this was a lot to take in at once.

“I-I …yea, yea. I’d love to do it.” He should have known that Agron would have the details worked out before he asked.

“Really now?” Agron’s lips turned into a smile as he eyed the man across the table. “Those are not words that should be used without specifying what it really is.”

“Well……if you were feeling better I could think of a few things that I wouldn’t mind doing but not until you’re feeling one hundred percent again.” Nasir reached over the table setting his hand on Agron’s before he turned back to the food in front of him. “So instead I was kind of thinking we could throw a movie in and curl up on the bed. If we fall asleep then we fall asleep, if we decide it sucks we can always cuddle up and get some sleep.” Really all he wanted was for Agron to get some sleep. He knew that once he was feeling completely better, he couldn’t be convinced that he needed to start sleeping like a normal person.

“Sounds good. Dishes can go in the sink. I’ll take care of them eventually.” He figured it would be in the morning but that wouldn’t bother him. That was why they had a dishwasher, all it took was loading it and yet he didn’t even feel like doing that right now.

“Sounds like a plan.”

***

This was perhaps one of the easiest things to do. Relaxing in Agron’s arms came natural to him, there was such an ease in the action. He would settle within his arms and there Agron would hold him, until he fell asleep. Yet even in his sleep Agron would hold onto him lightly.

Slipping from his arms, he moved out into the kitchen. Thankfully Agron was a heavy sleeper. He could have the kitchen cleaned up, the dishes put away and Agron would never know the difference, at least until the morning. His mind was still swimming with the proposition that Agron had made him earlier. Reaching across the counter he dialed Duro’s number and pressed the phone to his ear.

“They’re fine Nasir.” Duro’s voice wasn’t criticizing him, he just figured that that was why Nasir was calling.

“I know they are. Actually I was calling about something else. Your brother made me a proposition today and I guess I kind of want to see what you have to say about it.” Agron had said that they had talked about it, and he wasn’t surprised by that but he wanted to hear what Duro’s opinion was.

“Honestly? It was my suggestion Nasir. Things haven’t been the same since you left us.” The words weren’t hard for Duro to speak, it was the truth. He had seen what Nasir possessed, and he knew that they need that. Working with people was a lot like raising kids, all four of the men had done it effectively but Nasir was the best for the position.

“You…?” Nasir was confused now, the whole time though he began loading dishes into the dishwasher as he spoke. “Why?”

“Because, as I said, you were a great help to us.” Duro spoke quietly a smile forming as he spoke, though Nasir couldn’t see it through the phone. “And as long as you want to take it on, we’d love to have you.” Duro could only imagine that Agron had told him the same thing, but he wondered what Nasir had said in response.

“I want to Duro. I just don’t want something to go wrong with the kids and have both of us not be here.”

“No problem. You can both come and go as you please. Agron always has, I’m not looking for either one of you to be here all the time. Hell I’m not looking for any of us to be there all the time.” Duro loved Nasir like his own brother and there was nothing more that he wanted.  “Besides you have a baby boy to look after, I get that. I remember what that’s like, besides Aggy brings Austen with him half the time anyways so I’m sure you guys can figure something out.”

 


	10. Chapter 10

“Right,” Nasir knew that they would make it work. “ I just I guess I’m not sure what to think of this all. It’s kind of a shock.” Nasir couldn’t help laughing. He knew that Duro had made it work with little ones and that it would take adjusting but he would always help them out if they needed. “Thanks Duro.”

“No problem Nasir. I know that you wont prove me wrong so I’m not worried about you.” He offered a shrug even though he knew that Nasir couldn’t see him. To him it was a simple thing, and Duro would do anything for the men, or at least anything that he could reasonably.

“It means a lot to me.” Nasir knew the love that the man held for him, and he had always seen Duro as a sibling as well. It was an honor to hold someone like him to heart.

“Alright, so you can start after the trip to the cabin this week.” After their first trip to the lake it had been decided that they would all invest and that at least once a year they would all spend a week there. Thankfully Spring Break would be warm enough for them to go. “How’s Aggie?”

“He’s feeling better but even though he’ll try and say that he is, he’s not one hundred percent yet. You know how your brother is.”

“I know.” Duro couldn’t help laughing as he spoke. “Bribery seems to work well if you want to give it a try.” I mean I can just imagine what you could bribe him with.”

“I’m not sleeping with him Duro.” Nasir chuckled. “It’s more fun for me when he’s feeling himself.”

“No! No details Nasir! I don’t want to hear about Aggie feeling himself up!”

“That’s not what I meant!” Nasir sighed, leave it to Duro to twist his words.

“I know what you mean Nasir.” Sure, Duro could be tough for him to deal with at times but even Nasir would normally see that he was teasing.

“Are you alright Nasir?” Something just wasn’t right but Duro couldn’t put his finger on it though. “How’s your dad?”

“Doing alright. You know how it goes.” Eva and I went to see him last weekend.” In fact must to Nasir’s surprise, the young girl had asked to go see him.

“Good.” Duro had been worried about Nasir. He remembered well what he had gone through when he’d lost his mother. Yet, he seemed ok with this for now. “And yes I know what that’s like.” Much of Duro’s life growing up had been death and horror. He’d never forget holding his best friend while she died. He knew that there was nothing he could have done for here but be there as she did and yet it was a memory that still haunted him at night.

She had been one of the sweetest girls, all of Eva’s age, she had been the smart one, the pretty one and yet the kids at school just didn’t accept her. Her family life wasn’t much better. Her parents were drug addicts, who couldn’t care less what happened to their daughter, and sometimes Duro wondered if they even remembered that she existed.

That day in particular he’d let himself into the house, expecting to find Isabelle in the kitchen as he always did. Yet she was not there, instead, when he finally found her, she was lying on the bathroom floor, having slit her wrists. He had done everything that he could for her, by the time that help had arrived, she was gone, yet the memory was etched into his mind forever. Yet it was the one memory that Kat didn’t know about, he had never seen a reason to tell her, when it mattered, then and only then would he tell her.

“Duro?” Nasir’s voice brought him back from his thoughts. “Have you heard anything that I’ve been saying?”

“Yea, yea. This week, sorry, I was just thinking about what needs to be done yet.”

“Yea, I hear ya. I’ll let you go, cause I’ve got to some stuff here around the house. Always helps when Aggie is asleep and not trying to distract me.”

“Good Luck.”

“Thanks. I’ll need it. Five kids does not make for a clean house.”

“Hell, three does nothing for a clean house. Poor Kat’s always cleaning when I’m not around.” Duro sighed. It was the one thing that he regretted, not being of more help.

“I have the number of a good house keeper if you need it.” Nasir had kept the number but had yet to call, probably because he felt as though he had failed the family if couldn’t manage to take care of his own family. Yet he was more than willing to offer help to Kat and Duro if he could.

“Thanks, I’ll take anything at this point.”

They talked a little while later before hanging up and Nasir set himself to cleaning the house. The quiet was nice, it was tough to deal with at times as he had learned to deal with the kids running about and their laughter, yet he dealt with it alright.

 

***

“Hey, uh you got a minute?” Kat was leaning on the kitchen counter across from Agron. He found it odd that she was not out basking in the sun with Sibyl, Saxa and Naevia but yet here she stood before him.

“What’s up?” This was unlike Kat, she never breeched subject with him, except for when came to something involving Duro.

“I-it’s your brother.” Pressing her lips together, Kat couldn’t help but be concerned. “I-I think that he’s in love with someone else…..”

After a moment of confusion, Agron couldn’t help standing there laughing at her. After a minute, he found a moment to compose himself. “I’m sorry, this isn’t funny, yet it is all the same. Duro loves you and only you Kat, he would not stray far from that.”


	11. Chapter 11

“No, I’m serious.” Kat sighed, his reaction didn’t make her feel any better, in fact all it did was irritate her. “He hasn’t been sleeping well lately, but last night I thought I heard one of the girls and when I was crawling back into bed, he was muttering in his sleep…..h-he actually said another woman’s name…..followed by I love you.”

Agron’s brow furrowed as he looked at her. This was unlike his brother, he could think of very few women he had actually spoke those words to, and Kat was his world, none of this made sense. “What was her name?”

“I-Isabelle.” Kat was trying her hardest not to cry, yet there was no way for her to resist this time. Her heart was broken, and she didn’t know what to do.

“Fuck….” Agron sighed trying to figure out how to explain this to Kat. He had always thought Duro had told her, and yet it was obvious now that no such conversation had ever occurred. “Kat…..Gods I don’t know hot to tell you this.”

“It’s true isn’t it? He loves her and not me.” The tears she’d been trying to hold back were slipping down her cheeks, falling into the blonde hair that framed her face.

“No, no, it would be hard for him to love her.” Moving around the counter, he carefully took her within his arms. “He loves you, he wants you. She was his best friend many years ago, when he was another person.”

“W-what happened?” She didn’t understand Agron’s statement. Why would it be hard for him to love her? Yet, he had said was his best friend, what had happened?

“Well, they were sixteen.” Agron took her hand leading her to the couch, glad they’d decided on buying the place furnished at this point. “She was beautiful, smart, and she had the biggest heart, but like all kids at that age, all she wanted was to fit in. She had a rough home life, her parents were addicts. Duro tried time and time again to get her out of the house but it seemed like every time he got close, something happened and they just never removed her. Anyways, Duro would go over every day after school if she was missing and make sure that she was alright, I guess he was probably afraid that they had done something to her.”

Kat nodded for him to continue, that was the Duro that she knew and loved and it didn’t surprise her to hear him say this.

“Her parents were never home and she had an open door policy with Duro, she never worried about him as you can imagine.” A sigh slipped through his lips, he hated having to tell her this, and it was something that Duro should surely be telling her, he only knew of it second hand from his brother and he was sure there were details that were skewed from Duro’s emotional state upon telling him. “He found her on the bathroom floor, she’d slit her wrists, she died in his arms.”

Kat’s eyes flew open, mouth wide with shock. This was not what she had anticipated. She had always known that both brothers had skeletons lurking in the closet, yet she had never figured any of them were like this. “B-but….” There was nothing that she could say to this, and yet she felt horrible for assuming the worst after hearing this.

“He doesn’t really talk about it, not even with me.” Agron sighed, eyes falling on the woman before him. “I’d love to tell you that he didn’t have feelings for her but I can’t lie to you, I’ve always assumed that he probably did. Yet he will tell you Naevia was his first love, and in a way she was. Do not let a ghost come between what you have Kat, you are his world, if he lost you, I hate to think of what he’d do.”

All Kat could do was nod as she reached up to brush away tears, feeling like a fool now.

“I will talk to him and see if I can’t figure out what made the memories surface now of all times. You, go slip into a suit and go lay out with the other girls, I’m sure that you can use the time and it will be good for you. The girls are laying down, I’m sure one of us will hear them though if they get up, go relax.” He knew that this was a lot for her to take in and given what she had thought had happened; this had to be a relief for her, that was all he could imagine.

“T-thank you Agron.” The words were a stammer as she spoke but to emphasize them, she reached out taking the German within her arms, hugging him close to her. “It means the world to me.” To her, he was family, as was Nasir. She knew that they would both do anything for her and she would gladly return the favor to them.

“It’s no problem, it’s what family does.” Quirking a smile he wrapped an arm around her pulling her close for a moment giving her a gentle squeeze. “Now, don’t let such foolish thoughts weigh at your mind any longer. Go.” He could only imagine that by now the other women had begun to talk of her absence and were beginning to wonder what had happened.


	12. Chapter 12

“Apologies for interrupting.” Sibyl’s quiet voice interrupted the moment.

Kat’s chin turned up to look at her, a smile forming on her lips as she did. “No, you’re fine. Actually I was just going to see if you would come and help me pick out the right suit. I-I haven’t been in one since the twins were born and I’m not sure how I feel about any of them.” In truth, she had lost most of the weight again through hard work and dedication to it but she just didn’t feel comfortable with herself yet.

“Of course I will, but are you sure you do not wish for Saxa instead? Her judgments’ are often better than mine.” Poor Sibyl was used to living under Saxa’s shadow, and yet she seemed comfortable there.

“Positive.” She pushed herself from the couch, taking the woman’s hand within her own, almost pulling her down the hallway towards her and Duro’s room. “Come on. Out, Out.”

“Alright, Alright.” Duro’s voice could be heard in the hallway before he appeared before Agron. “Women. She doesn’t trust my judgment.”

“No, she thinks that you’re going to lie to her.” Agron offered a grin. “I mean think about it from this view. If you tell her you hate it, then she feels like you don’t like how she looks and yet if you tell her it’s the greatest thing you’ve ever seen, she wonders if you really mean it. Don’t tell me that you don’t know exactly what I’m talking about, you’ve felt it too.”

“I will never know why you understand woman the way that you do even though you have no interests in them.” They were words spoken in jest but the meaning carried true. He did not understand his brother’s understanding of women and he’d dated a few now.

“Perhaps if you did not keep things from them, you would better understand.”  The words took Duro by surprise; he had no idea what Agron was talking about.

“What are you talking about?”

“Isabelle. You swore to me you’d told Kat.” Though he was irritated at having been lied to, Agron fought to keep his voice calm. He would not yell at his brother, he meant not to upset him, only to get his point across. “And yet she approached me swearing you love another.”

“What?” Duro’s eyes flew open in shock. “Why?” His eyes drifted to the hallway and the closed door, wanting to hold the woman, to reassure her and yet he still didn’t understand what exactly was going on.

“She said she got up last night because she heard one of the girls and when she came back to bed, you were talking about her in your sleep.” Agron hated to make him talk about this but he wouldn’t talk about it with Kat so he had to talk to someone. “Why now? You swore to me that you were fine with it, that you had gotten over it. Why now do you have an issue with it?”

“I ran into a girl the other day, I-I….” Duro shook his head, flopping to the couch beside his brother, hoping that he couldn’t tell that there were tears starting to form in his own eyes. “I’da sworn it was her Aggie, I really would have.”

“Why didn’t you mention it?” He loved his brother, but sometimes he didn’t understand why he did some of the things that he did. This was one of them, Duro told him everything, yet he didn’t tell him this.

“It didn’t seem important. I wasn’t bothered by it, I mean, yea I dreamt of her last night but it’s not the first time. It happens from time to time. She didn’t deserve it Aggie…she deserved to live.”

“I know.” Agron had loved the girl’s company as Duro had, though he had never been nearly as attached. “But she will always be with you Duro. Just talk to Kat about it alright?”

All Duro could do was nod. “I’ll talk to her tonight. She deserves to have fun right now.” The woman was beginning to form an amazing friendship with Sibyl and she had always had one with Naevia, and he knew that she needed this as much as he did.

Agron was getting ready to speak when Kat and Sibyl came bounding down the hallway.

“Holy Fuck.” Duro’s eyes drifted over the woman a smile forming on his lips. “God I’ve always known you’re beautiful, but this is holy fuck….”

Sibyl allowed a laugh to slip between her lips, “I told you that it was the best.”

“I’m trying to figure out when she bought it cause I don’t remember it.”

            “Last week, I needed some alone time while you were at work so I called Kore and went shopping.”

            “Go out with Sibyl because if you stay here much longer, well you can just about imagine.”

            Slipping out onto the deck, Sibyl and Kat quietly padded across it before slipping into a lawn chair.

“Everything alright?” Naevia’s eyes turned to look at Kat. They had become close friends over the past few years and she was concerned about the woman in all honesty. Especially after Kat had confided in her earlier this morning.

“Yea, everything’s fine, other than you know he wants to rip my clothes off and all.”

“Did you tell him the price first.”

Kat allowed a laugh to slip between her lips. “He’ll figure it out eventually, but he’s not allowed to bitch, I work too and I’d like to remind him that I also make more than he does so I earned it at this point.”

“The perks of being a professional woman.” Saxa grinned her eyes falling upon the pair as she leaned forward. She had found herself successful along with Sibyl in helping her with stable. While they still had their issues, they had come to terms that they were in this together and nothing they could do changed that, just outside of leaving the man that they loved.

“Men don’t like it though, they hate making less than we do.” Kat simply shook her head. Duro would never admit to it, but she knew that he didn’t appreciate not being able to provide for his family. Though to his credit, she could understand why it bothered him. After all it had been Agron who provided for them as kids, and now he still couldn’t provide what they needed.


	13. Chapter 13

“Hey Saxa?” Nasir’s voice caused the woman to roll in the chair so that she was laying on her stomach facing him.

“Yes?”

“Did Kai say where they were going?” He knew that the girls had stolen Derrick and Brice and disappeared, something that happened often now that Kai was driving but he had gotten few details out of Eva.

“Yea, they were going to play miniature golf and then going out for slurpees.”

Nasir offered a nod a smile forming on his lips; he didn’t mind that they were growing more independent; he just wished that now and then someone filled him in on what was going on. “It’s good to see them getting along again. He knew that in many cases siblings didn’t always do so and yet, this group did.

In fact it reminded him much of the way that Duro and Agron were, and for that he was glad.

“How’s Austen doing?” Sibyl knew that it had been hard for Saxa lately being away from the little boy and yet she still stayed strong in her decision. She had made it and she wouldn’t change her mind, yet some days it was very tough.

“Doing good. Thankfully he didn’t end up with whatever Aggie had, he’s putting on weight but once he’s up and walking around that will change I’m sure.” Sitting on the edge of the deck, Nasir found himself relaxing, he was glad to be here.

Saxa nodded softly. “Little One, you think we should tell them?” Her eyes turned to Sibyl as if it was her news to share as well. She knew well that Naevia already knew but she wished for her friends to know as well.

“I think that you should yes.”

“Good News?” Kat pushed herself up on her side as she watched the two women. They were so very different from one another and yet, they complimented each other perfectly. She knew that they didn’t always get along and yet when they did, they could be unstoppable.

“Very.” Naevia offered a smile. For her this was a good thing, and she was glad that she had been able to help the woman out.

“Well go ahead!” Sibyl laughed. “It is not my news to share.”

“Gannicus and I have decided to adopt.” Saxa’s eyes lit up as she spoke. “And of course I am sure that Little One will help out as well.”

“That’s wonderful!” Nasir offered a smile, “It’s not always easy, but at the end of the day, it is so very worth it. Have you decided what age?”

“Well, we had thought about a little one, but I know that it’s harder for the older ones to find families, and we talked about it and I think it’s just a matter of finding someone who works well with our family and then whatever age they happen to be is fine.”  While Saxa would prefer a little one, she would take whatever she could and be happy. “I must remember to speak to Agron too.”

***

“What’s up Saxa?” Agron’s eyebrows rose seeing the woman standing before him. He knew that Crixius was still awake but otherwise he thought that the rest were asleep. He knew that Nasir was probably curled up with a book since he didn’t sleep without Agron.

“I-I wanted to talk to you about something. It’s about Austen.” She found herself sinking into the chair across from Agron, hands fiddling in her lap. It was odd for Agron to see her this awkward. She was so strong, he didn’t understand her caution.

“Go ahead. You know that you’re always welcome to talk, what is it?”

“I-I wanted to ask if you would give him something for me, when he is old enough to understand of course.” Pressing her lips together, Saxa paused to allow him to understand what she was talking about.

“Of course I will.” He offered a smile moving to the arm of the chair that she was sitting in.  “You aught to know that by now.” He would do anything for her no matter what she asked, especially when it came to the little boy because without her he would not have the blessed boy. “So what is it?”

“It is my grandfather’s ring.” She reached up removing the chain from around her neck. Normally it was worn tucked into her shirt but tonight he finally saw what it held. Placing the ring within his hand, she returned the chain to its place. “While my parents may not have treated me as I deserved but he always did. It is the only thing that I have of my family.”

Offering a smile, Agron took her hand, pressing it back into her hand. “Hold onto it Saxa, there will be plenty of time before you have to give it up.” He could tell what this meant to her, yet she was willing to give it up, which made him love the woman even more, which he didn’t know was possible.

The woman offered a simple nod, returning it to it’s place around her neck before she turned her chin up to look at the man she had taken as her older brother. “Would you mind if I were to take him out for the day tomorrow?”

“No, go ahead.” Agron wished for her happiness and he could only imagine how hard this was for her to adjust to, and he would do anything for her. “Besides, you will need practice if you are to have one of your own.” Nasir had told him that they were looking to adopt and he could think of nothing better.

“Gratitude. Now go to bed, I’m sure that Nasir is waiting for you in bed.” A smile played with her lips. She had known Agron before Nasir and in truth, she had come to fall in love with the man that he was now with the man. They had found not only happiness in one another but they had found themselves as well.


	14. Chapter 14

“Are you alright Saxa?” He was worried about the woman, he knew that this situation with Sibyl had been hard on her and he wished that he could make it better for her, yet he didn’t know how to.

“Yea, he’s happy.” She could only assume that this was what Agron was speaking of and she wanted to show him that she was alright, yet she wasn’t really sure how. “Little One can be tough to deal with at times, but she’s becoming like a friend. She understands what it is that I am going through, the annoying parts of him; it’s like having a confidant who knows exactly what you’re going through.” She knew that it was going to be a long road and eventually, maybe it wouldn’t even matter. “I said it before, I would live the rest of my life without marrying him if it meant his happiness and I still mean that.”

***

“Hey Kat?” He’d been laying there beside her trying to decide how to propose this topic with her. He had promised Agron he would tell her about Isabelle, yet he just didn’t know how. The woman beside him knew some of his deepest and darkest secrets without judging him, yet he didn’t know how to tell her this, or even why he hadn’t told her before.

“Yea?” Kat rolled to face him, chin resting against her arm. “What’s up?”

“C-can we talk about something? Aggie mentioned that you were upset earlier and I think you need to hear what really happened. I swear to you, there will never be another woman for me. You are the one person that I will ever love, god forbid anything happen to you because I’d spend the rest of my life alone.” The tears that he’d been fighting since that afternoon slowly slipped down his cheeks. He had finally reached the point where he couldn’t hold it back anymore.

His tears surprised her, Duro had never cried, not even when he spoke about his mother, which he had an extremely hard time with. “Tell me about her, it…..whatever you’re comfortable with.” She didn’t want to press further than he was comfortable but yet, she also felt as though, he would feel better if he got it off his chest.

“She was amazing, a lot like Saxa is. So smart and beautiful, but she was strong too. The only life she ever knew was one under two drug addicts who couldn’t have cared less about her.” He paused closing his eyes for a minute. There was so much about this young girl that he wished he could find the words to explain to her.

“It’s alright to be upset.” Moving she draped and arm around him, leaning her head against his chest, trying her hardest to make him understand that she was here for him, that she loved him and she understood what he was going through. “Just talk, about anything that you’re comfortable with.”

“I see her now and then in Eva honestly. God she didn’t deserve to die, especially not like that.” He paused for a minute lips pressed together as he thought. “I should have known something was wrong when she didn’t come to school. She’d just asked out this guy that she was really interested in, unfortunately he was highly influential. He’d took her out and at the end of the night, he pushed further than she was comfortable. She never said if they slept together or not, if she did it was only to get him to like her. The next morning though he told his buddies that she was nothing more than an ugly whore. She was on cloud nine until she heard that, and she went home sick.”

Kat didn’t want to interrupt but instead, she offered a gentle squeeze to his arm, a silent reminder that she was still there and she was on his side but she wanted so badly to do more. She knew this couldn’t be easy for him to remember, to live with as he had for so many years now.

“W-when I got there, I found her laying there on the bathroom floor and god there was so much blood.” While he had been recomposing himself but now, now at the memory he found himself crying all over again.

“It’s alright, whenever you’re ready.” Her voice was quiet, and she was trying so hard to be his wife, his friend and not the therapist that she had been trained to be in situations such as these.

“She was gone before help could even arrive. I knew that when I found her, there wasn’t much hope but I had to try. I-I…At least she knew love before she died what it was like for someone to love her and really actually care about her.” He had never spoken those words, not even to Agron. While he was glad to have been able to offer her comfort in her last few moments, it still killed him to have had to go through it. “He was the reason she did it, everyone knew that and yet, no one bothered to pursue it. Everyone just said she was mentally unstable and that was what finally pushed her to the edge.”

“Unfortunately, it happens more often then you think.” Over the years she had seen it more times than she liked to admit but there was little that she could do about it.

“I just….” He didn’t know what to say, it was a feeling that he wasn’t used to, he always knew what to say and yet this time, he was speechless. “She’s always here, I know that but I ran into a woman the other day in the shop and I’d have sworn that it was her. I guess it brought it all back again. I’m sorry I didn’t tell you before, I just, it’s not easy to talk about it.”


	15. Chapter 15

“No, No, it’s fine.” Kat’s fingers ran up his shoulder. “I mean, how long did it take me to finally tell you that I was fighting an eating disorder? We all deal with things in our own time.”

“And we got you turned around. You’re beautiful Kat don’t ever forget that and I will always love you.” Curled his arms around Kat, Duro couldn’t imagine life without her. “So are there any other surprises that I should be worried about from this shopping trip?”

“Maybe, but then again maybe not. You’ll figure it out eventually.”

“Get some sleep Kat. You’ll need it if you’re going to be chasing after Karlee and Hope all day.” Despite their rought start the twings were doing well now. OF course they still had minor issues but they were happy and healthy which was enough for him.

“I love you Duro.” Kat leaned up pressing a kiss to his lips.

***

“Eva!” Agron’s holler out the back door caused both Duro and Nasir to lean up over the back of the couch.

“What’s up?” Nasir couldn’t imagine why Agron was pissed off at this point. Normally he and Eva got along so well.

“I’m more interested in didn’t he say he was going to take a shower? Who gets out of the shower to be pissed?” Leave it to Duro, Nasir supposed. However, that still didn’t answer the question of what had pissed Agron off.

“You called?” Eva looked absolutely baffled as she stood before him, her eyes falling upon the man she called her father.

“Do you happen to know where my shampoo is?” He knew the answer well; she had stolen it or finished it and forgotten to mention it again.

“No.” Eva didn’t have the foggiest idea what he was talking about, and normally she was the culprit but this time it wasn’t her fault.

“I stole it this morning.” Nasir’s eyebrows rose. “It should be sitting on the edge of the sink.”

While it was normally Eva’s fault, this time it wasn’t and Nasir felt bad that she had been blamed for it. Though more than once the young girl had stolen it, or finished it and forgotten to tell Agron that she had. It was a battle that he was beginning to get used to, but he wasn’t sure if that was good or bad.

Emerald eyes drifted over Eva for a minute. “Apologies.” No sooner had the word left his lips than he turned on heel and moved towards the couch that Nasir was leaning on the back of. “I suppose it is you who need a lecture on leaving things where you found them.”

“I meant to but Saxa was looking for something before she took Austen out and I set it down and, I’ll be honest I forgot about it. I’m sorry.” He felt bad, but more so that Eva had been blamed for something that he had done.

“It’s alright. You’ve got a lot going on. Did Saxa say where she and Ganny were kidnapping the little guy to?” He knew that they had taken him out, it made him feel better knowing that she was happy. The last few times they had spoken, she didn’t seem herself and that worried him.

Yet it was hard to tell if it was the addition of Sibyl to the relationship, or something else that was going on but seeing her happy when she left with Austen that morning had brought a smile to his own lips.

“Alright, enough you two.” Duro shook his head. Naevia and Kat had taken the young ones to go and play at the park. He had insisted that he would go along but the two women had insisted that they could handle the five little ones and he knew that they could.

In the end he had agreed to stay because he knew that Kat needed the alone time with the other woman and Sibyl had accepted an invitation to go along with him which made him feel a little better. Hope could be a handful at times, and he was almost positive that it was likely that she had some type of learning disability.

Agron threw a dirty look at Duro rolling his eyes. “Have I told you to pipe down lately?”

“Not lately but now might be the time for it.” Crixius’ voice sounded tired as he wandered into the room. He was trying so hard to make the change from being up all night at work to being awake during the day with the kids and spending time with them.

“Ah the walking dead came to join us.” A smirk with Duro’s lips as he watched him. He knew that the man was having troubles with this but by the end of the week, he would be trying to go the opposite way again.

“Shut up. Not until I’ve had coffee.” Crixius sighed sinking into a chair, coffee mug in hand. “I’m not sure what about I’m on vacation and I’m not even in the area the hospital has a hard time with but at two this morning they were calling me to come in.”

“Tell me that you told them no.” Nasir sympathized with the man, for the first couple years that Eva had been with them, Nasir had been bar tending but unlike the other man, he had tried to take care of her and work. He’d learned over those years that burning the candle at both ends just wasn’t going to work out for him. Eventually Agron had convinced him to give up the job and he wouldn’t have changed that decision for anything.

“Well, no I didn’t tell them no.” A laugh slipped through his lips. “Naevia on the other hand, she told them not only no but hell no. She also suggested that they learn what the word vacation meant.”

“I’m sure that went over well.” Agron shook his head, though he wasn’t surprised though, it was something that he could surely see the woman doing.


	16. Chapter 16

“Well….it went better than the last time. The last time she told them we were having sex and to go fuck themselves…..you’d never believe how bad payback sucks.” Crixius shook his head. “So something tells me that I’ll end up being punished somehow but I’m not really concerned about it. They get jealous that I actually take a vacation so there will be retribution eventually but I’ll live with it. The ladies take the munchkins to the park?” He knew that Naevia had spoken of it but she hadn’t woken him to tell him what her plans really were.

“Yea, they were going to the park and then they were stopping for ice cream.” Duro was growing restless. “You know, I think the girls will be fine and Brice and Derrick are old enough to stay out of trouble, I say we go out and play a round of golf or something.”

Agron’s eyes turned to his brother. “Let’s think about the last time we went golfing….”

“You cussed the whole time, it was rather entertaining.” Nasir knew that this probably wasn’t the answer that he was looking for but it was the truth, it had been kind of fun to watch. “And as I recall Crixius won.”

“Did you miss that whole I’m a doctor thing?” Crixius shook his head. “It kind of comes with the territory. Honestly, I hate the game but my coworkers love it and they insist that we go out and play on a day off. It’s like socializing with lawyers and their spoiled ass kids.”

“mmmm you mean like that snake that hit on Amelia?” Agron recalled the story rather well. The kid was no older than Amelia and Eva but he had always had the best of everything which meant that when he found something that he wanted he got it and he had wanted Amelia.

“Tiberius? Rotten little good for nothing kid.” They weren’t the words that Crixius wanted to use and yet, he used them anyways. He was trying to watch his tongue but he couldn’t imagine why. “His father’s one of the most influential lawyers in town and he thinks that he can get away with anything that he wants. He’s not getting my daughter, that’s for damn sure.”

It was the first time that any of them had heard him speak out about the subject but it was easy to see that his impression of the boy was not the greatest. “Eva’s been begging to go to some party with Amelia and Kai, I have a feeling that he’s probably got a hand in it.” Agron leaned against the back of the couch, arms crossing as he did. “She’s sure as hell not going, I’ll live with her hating me for telling her no but I just cant let her go. Not after everything else she’s already been through.”

“The same for Amelia, she’s not going to go. I already put my foot down on that one. And you’re right, he’s putting the bash on. She’s already screamed, told me how awful I am, all the fun details but eventually she’s going to thank me for not fitting in with that ungrateful little bastard.” That was the Crixius that they all knew and loved.

“Or he’s going to make all of our lives hell, either way, they’re going to make it through.” Nasir offered a shrug as he looked at him.

“Wait, wait….Tiberius as in Marcus Crassus’ son?” Duro pressed his lips together, eyes falling upon Agron. “Name ringing any bells with you?”

“I’m sure it should but no, not really.” Agron couldn’t understand what his brother was talking about. For all he knew it was someone that they went to school with so many years ago and it wasn’t like he’d had a lot of time then to actually pay attention to thing.

A sigh slipped through Duro’s lips. “Top of your class, better than thou, last person Isabelle was seen with?” He was trying so hard to jog Agron’s memory but he was beginning to think that it was a losing battle.

“Oh…..” Agron pursed his lips together, the pieces finally falling together as they should. “That arrogant bastard.”

“So it’s a family trait then?” Crixius spoke up, eyes on the brothers. He was sure that there were more details to this story that he should eventually get but when they were ready they would share them.

“Pretty much, and I stand by my decision, she’s not going if that’s the case.” His eyes fell upon Nasir, over time he had accomplished the same thing that he had with Duro. He no longer needed to speak all of the words that he wished to, instead all he had to do was share a look with the man and he understood.

In response Nasir offered a nod, he knew that he would eventually get the whole story from him and he trusted his decision. Agron always held the girl’s best interests at heart and that was true in this case as well, he supposed, yet he still wished he knew what they were talking about.

“I’m going to guess that these are not good circumstances and I’m always going to gather that I was right in telling her no.” Crixius took a swig from the mug in his hand trying to take it in.

“If he’s anything like his father is, oh hell yea.” Agron sighed eyes closing for a minute. “Alright, maybe Duro’s right. A round of golf and we’ll all be fine again.”

“And here you were complaining twenty minutes ago.” Nasir laughed.

“Yea well, it’s either that or we’re going to sit here comparing parenting style and deciding how people end up the way that they do and I’m not ready for that so, golf it is.” In truth he wasn’t ready to strike the nerve that he knew the conversation would for Duro. He knew that the man didn’t deal with it well and he would do anything to escape that pain for him. 


	17. Chapter 17

***

“Are you happy about this decision?” Naevia had always wondered because she really hadn’t gotten to talk about it with Sibyl.

“I am happy if he is happy.” This was on the things that Naevia admired about the woman. She would selflessly sacrifice her happiness in order to assure someone else’s.

“How do you feel about it though?” While Kat and Saxa got along very well, she enjoyed Sibyl’s company as well.

“I-I…” Sibyl wasn’t used to talking about herself. “Yes, I am happy. Our family may not be conventional but it works and it is not as though he is trying to hide us from one another and still see us.”

“Right, that would be much harder for everyone.” Naevia’s eyes drifted over the woman before allowing them to turn back to the kids who were happily playing. “You’ll find that no matter how you live there will always be someone who is going to judge you for how you live.”

“H-how do you deal with it?” She had heard her speak of a run in that she or Crixius had experienced with someone who insisted that one had obviously cheated in order to end up with a child of another race. Yet, even so Naevia wouldn’t change the decision to adopt him.

“It’s not always as easy as it sounds.” Naevia wouldn’t lie to her about how hard it was, it was brutal at times. “Eventually though you just start saying, this is me, nothing you do or say is going to change that. As long as you are happy who gives a fuck what happens when it comes to other people? From what I can see you are all very happy.”

“And it’s not hard to see that Gannicus truly loves you both.” While they were both different types of love, he loved them both all the same. It figured though that it was Kat who would have pointed out something like this.

“H-he does. Yet I feel like sometimes Saxa doesn’t appreciate my presence.” Though she had felt it many times before, she had never actually said it out loud. Not even when Gannicus had asked.

“Saxa can be abrasive at times.” Kat felt bad in all honesty knowing that it was hard to deal with her sometimes. “But in all honesty, she means well. How are the kids dealing with everything?”

“It took some time for them to adjust but once they had done so, they seem alright with the idea. Brice seems to connect better with Saxa but Kai came bursting in this morning insisting that I had to help her with her make up.” Sibyl’s voice was quiet but her face lit up as she spoke of the young girl and she actually seemed happy.

“Good then do not worry about what everyone else my dear. Live your life and let everyone else worry about if they don’t like it or not.” Kat allowed a grin to slip across her lips. “Believe me, there are many people who question what I see in Duro. I have a degree, hell I have a PHD and he owns a coffee shop. It’s not heaven but I love him, so fuck off is kind of my attitude.”

“And my skin tone is often a source of controversy within society. They look at Crixius and wonder what he sees in me but it works for us.” Naevia offered a smile. “And Aggie and Nasir have it hard too. They are perhaps the best example.”

“I see the point. I worry most for Brice and Kai. The torture that being different will cause.” Sibyl allowed a sigh to slip between her lips.

***

“What’s the matter?” It had not escaped Gannicus’ attention that Sibyl hardly seemed herself. Even now as everyone was gathered in the living room, she had settled in the kitchen quietly working on something. “Are you upset with me? Did I upset you?”

“No, no. I’m just trying to figure this out and it’s not going as well as it could be.” Leaning back into his arms the woman pressed a kiss to his cheek, laughing as his hair tickled at her face.

“What is it?”

“Book keeping. I know that I promised I would leave it at home but I have to get it done.”

“Aggie would help I’m sure if you ask. His logic is hard to follow at times but he’ll get you what you need. But let it wait until morning.” He knew that it was not the only thing bothering her.

“Yea, that sounds like a good idea.”

Leaning his lips closer to her ear he began to speak again, voice low. “What is wrong Sibyl?”

“Nothing. I was just thinking.” Her ability to hold out on him was beginning to wane.

“Give voice Sibyl. If it is something that we need to discuss then tell me and see if from mind.” He wished only to see her happy and smiling once more, yet he didn’t know what to make it so.

“It is nothing of concern.” She enjoyed being within his arms, knowing that she had his attention, and that she did not need to vie for it anymore, at least not for now.

“Concern or not, I would still wish to know what it is. Come and sit with me on the deck and speak of it?” Unlike Saxa he normally had to pull things from Sibyl. It was tough but he was beginning to learn how to deal with it. Pressing a hand to her hip, he attempted to push her forward towards the back door and the deck. He wondered if it would help to be alone, perhaps she would feel better knowing that he was the only one to hear her words and she knew that he would not think that she was stupid.


	18. Chapter 18

“Alright, alright I am coming.” She pushed herself after him towards the door slipping out it, she allowed a shiver to slip through her body. It was beautiful during the day but at night there was a cool wind off of the lake.

Slipping into the deck chair he held his arms out to her. “Come here.” He wished to hear what she was thinking. It wasn’t easy but it was also possible and he knew that. She would speak if given the time to.

“I-I…I just….” She slipped within his arms again, allowing him to pull her close. “I feel as though Saxa wishes I was not around.”

Gannicus allowed a laugh to slip between his lips before he thought about it. “Apologies, we were talking about this today and actually it is the opposite, she doesn’t always know how to show it but she does enjoy your company. Why else do you think that she came to work with you?”

Sibyl was confused by this and yet, she was at peace for some reason. Perhaps she was simply trying to make the situation work.

***

“Alright, so this is your final number here.” Agron offered attempting to explain the process to her. “And here’s the work to get there.” He couldn’t help but laugh as he eyed the confused look on both Sibyl and Saxa’s face. “Why do I think that you don’t get it?”

“No, it’s not that I don’t get it. I’m just trying to figure out where all the numbers come in.” His style of book keeping and her own were very different but it was not that she didn’t understand his way, just not which number was which.

“Oh, here….we can write in their labels if it will make you feel better.” It wasn’t that he didn’t use them, he just didn’t use them all the time. When it came to something like this, he had  an easier time without them because they could get confusing. “Or your other half actually owns a program that does this, you enter the numbers and it will do everything that you ask it to.”

“GANNICUS!” Saxa’s holler echoed off of the walls causing Sibyl and Agron to laugh. She would be more than willing to do it that way if it was much easier but she couldn’t help wondering why he hadn’t mentioned it before now.

“Huh?” Gannicus poked his head in, eyes drifting over the group in front of him. He hadn’t figured out exactly what had caused her to call but he could only figure that it had something to do with what the women had asked of Agron.

“Let me see your computer. We’ve just spent three hours trying to figure this out but now I find out you could have solved it hours ago with a program on the computer?” The woman’s scowl should have told him everything that he needed to know about her mood.

His eyes turned to Agron. “Traitor.” He mumbled turning to go and get the computer. He had intended to tell the girls about it but he had wanted them to figure it out themselves first. He knew that Agron could do it and he was sure that he could help them figure out how he got there as well. Returning a minute later he set the computer in front of the pair. “All you have to do is put in your numbers as the category is labeled and it’ll do the rest for you.”

            “Thank you.” Sibyl’s voice was soft as she began to enter the information that she was looking for.

            Saxa on the other hand offered something in her native tongue which caused Agron to chuckle.

            “Be nice Saxa.” His eyes turned to Gannicus, grin still upon his lips. “You have got to learn the language. It’ll be so much easier for you to defend yourself that way.”

            “I am content in the way that it works now. I understand enough to communicate but outside of that, I need not know everything.” He didn’t feel it necessary to learn it. Sibyl was the opposite; her Greek heritage did nothing for her. She had never seen the land, never spoken its’ language but her family had, its’ influences were there within her despite it all.

            Saxa though, it was evident that she had seen Germany, much like Agron. She spoke the language, she loved and missed her home lands and despite her issues with her family, she often times drug Agron and Duro with her on vacation to visit.

            “One day you will regret that. Brice is beginning to pick it up.” Agron shook his head, eyes never leaving Saxa. “Shall I assume that you taught him?”

            “Much like you taught Aerlia?” Nasir’s voice surprised him but it was true. Despite Nasir’s insistence not to the young girl was picking it up with ease. “And Eva?”

“It’s not the end of the world now is it?” Agron wouldn’t take back the decision to do such. She was fluent in English as well as Nasir had insisted. “I’d have taught her whatever it is that you speak but even I cant figure that out so I know that she wont either. Besides I’ve been telling you for years now that she has the perfect word formations for it. Even Duro agreed.”

Nasir couldn’t help laughing as he listened to the man he had fallen in love, and spent so much time with. “And we all know that Duro is the expert on everything.” He was only teasing knowing how protective Agron was of his baby brother, he would lash out at anyone for it, even Nasir. It wasn’t that he didn’t appreciate him, he just couldn’t stand anyone making fun of him after all that they had been through.

“Duro is a sweetheart.” Sibyl’s voice caught Agron’s attention. It wasn’t that he didn’t realize that she was still there; he simply hadn’t expected that she would say such a thing. Duro could be hard to deal with at times, especially for someone like Sibyl.


	19. Chapter 19

“Speaking of Duro where is he?” Gannicus was just realizing that he hadn’t seen him or Kat all morning now.

“He took Kat shopping with Faith. She’s been having a really rough couple of weeks, I know she’s having issue with one of her patients and I think that he’s trying to make her feel better again.”  Nasir was leaned on Agron’s shoulders as he spoke. “Karlee’s still asleep and Anne’s playing Aerlia and Lea.”

***

“I can’t believe that they won’t let you go.” Kai lay flat on her stomach on the sleeping bag that lay on the floor.

Eva knew that when Agron said no, the answer was no and there was no changing it. She might not think that it was fair, she might not be happy with it, but the answer was still no. “Oh well, we can still do something that night. We could go see a movie or something.” She knew that Amelia had also been told that she couldn’t go and neither girl had any intentions of going against their parents.

“Yea, that sounds like fun.” Amelia was trying to help bolster the case, she knew that Kai was upset and it was going to be tough to convince the girl that they shouldn’t go.

Kai had inherited Gannicus’ wild side and even he had a hard time reining her in sometimes. More than once now, he had called his mother to apologize for the things that he had done as a child and the only response he ever got was a laugh. She had told him several times that she hoped he would end up with a child just like him, and he certainly had.

“No, that’s boring and childish! Come on guys, there has to be a way to go, it’s Tiberius after all.” The girl was bound and determined to make this work. “Maybe Sibyl will take us.”

If she got caught, such a stunt would get her into trouble but she was hoping more than anything that they weren’t going to get caught because if they did, there would be issues. Yet Gannicus hadn’t told her she couldn’t go, so she wouldn’t really be going against his wishes.

“I’m not going.” Eva shrugged.

“When did you become such a goody two shoes?” Kai’s voice was calm but her tone was serious as well.

Eva didn’t respond, instead she pushed herself up off the bed, slipping from the room tears forming in her eyes as she moved down the hallway. Kai was her friend, one of her best friends in fact, but she had hurt her and that wasn’t going to change.

“Eva?” Crixius’ voice surprised the girl as she looked up at the sound of it, tears streaking her cheeks as she did.

“Y-yea?” The young girl was almost glad to see him rather than Agron or Nasir. He knew that they would only tell her that she shouldn’t be upset and take it to heart and yet it wasn’t that easy.

“Whats the matter?” While he was not truly her family, Crixius had come to be like her uncle as Gannicus had. She would do as he told her to and didn’t question his authority yet she didn’t really want to talk about it right now.

“Oh, it is nothing important.” She didn’t want him to worry and she feared even more so that he would rouse Gannicus if he heard what Kai had done and that would only upset the other girl even more than she already was. That was the last thing that Eva needed to do, the girl was he friend, she wished to keep her happy and as such.

“It seems pretty important. Especially if it upset you enough that you are crying. Have you spoken to your fathers about it?” He knew the answer before he had asked the question yet, he asked it anyways. To hear the answer from her lips would only serve as confirmation of the words though.

“No. It is not important enough to wake them.” Hell, Eva would be leery to wake them if the world was coming to an end. Not because she was afraid of either one, but simply because she felt bad for waking them. In this instance it just didn’t seem important enough to wake them and for that reason here she was.

“Would you like to talk about it?”

“What are you still doing up?” It was an easy change in subject, yet she didn’t feel like talking about what was really bothering her.

“I don’t really sleep much normally, and even when I do it’s not at night.” Crixius offered a shrug, aware of what she was doing. “Now as I said, would you like to talk about it?”

“No, not really.” Eva didn’t even think for a moment that this would help her to get him off of her case, this wasn’t really a question, it was his way of breaching subject with her. He was used to dealing with Amelia and Eva wasn’t much different. “Did Amelia have anything to do with it?”

“No, she didn’t have anything to do with it.” The words were easy to speak but the ones that would follow it would not be as easy to speak. “Kai said something and it kind of bothered me I guess.” She didn’t get any more specific, she didn’t feel the need to at this point.

“Does it have something to do with this party that you girls were invited to?” He could only imagine that there was something about it linked to this story and if Eva was fighting it there was a chance that Amelia would be as well.

“Yea.” The answer was simple yet she felt like she had never spoken more damning words in her life.

“Your father has his reasons for not letting you go Eva. I’m not sure what they are, much as I’m not sure what Gannicus’ reasons for letting Kai go are. However know that it is a decision that they did not make lightly. 


	20. Chapter 20

“She just doesn’t understand why I wont go against their wishes.” The young girl was baffled by what would cause such a statement from her best friend.

“Hang on.” Pushing himself from the chair he moved quietly down the hallway, placing a knock upon Gannicus’ door.

He was met with the door opening and Gannicus leaning against the door frame. “You rang?”

“What were you waiting on me to show up?” Crixius quirked an eyebrow, grin forming upon lips.

“Honestly? No I was going to peek in on the girls but you showed up first. Whats up?” The Celt seemed so at ease and Crixius had never figured out how he stayed that way after everything that he dealt with. Yet as long as he had known him he had been this way.

“It’s Eva.” Crixius was concerned for the girl, yet he couldn’t decide if it was worth waking Agron or not.

“And?” While he adored the young girl as family, he couldn’t figure out why Crixius was approaching him instead of Agron or Nasir.

“Kai is the cause of it. I don’t know what was said but she’s in tears. That doesn’t sound like the girls we’ve come to know and love.” He figured that Amelia would tell him what he was looking for and yet he didn’t want to put her in that position especially knowing the mood Kai was in.

“That girl is going to be the death of me one of these days.” One of Gannicus’ calloused hands reached up to rub over his eyes. His eyes cast over his shoulder for a minute to the women who already lay asleep within the bed before he slipped out into the hallway, pulling the door shut behind himself. “Eva in the living room?” He couldn’t help if he didn’t know what had happened. IT would be tough but before Kai went to bed tonight, they would be getting along once more.

“When I left her she was on the couch. She looked tired and I’m not sure that she’s still awake.” He could only picture the girl asleep upon the couch.

“Poor kid. Come on let’s go see what my darling angel has done this time.” As sarcastic as he sounded, he really did love Kai. She was just a challenge for him to deal with at times.

            “Sounds good. How do you want to go about this?” While he was used to dealing with Amelia, Kai could be a handful compared to her.

            “See if Eva is still awake. I want to hear what exactly Kai said; when I know it’s much harder for her to say that I am twisting her words.” Gannicus sighed. He was all but positive that his mother had taught her that.

            “Sounds like a plan.” Crixius was more than willing to help. What else was he going to do in the middle of the night, other than go stir crazy of course?

            The young girl was still curled up on the couch, though she was beginning to fall asleep.

            “Eva?” Gannicus’ voice was quiet as he spoke, fingertips brushing through her hair lightly. She had always been much like his own daughter. “What’s the matter?”

            “It isn’t important as I said earlier.” Her eyes fell upon Crixius, a scowl upon her face. She had spoken to him, not anticipating something like this and it annoyed her that he had broken that trust. She had not asked to speak with Gannicus and he aught to know by now that if she wanted something, she would ask for it.

“It is important though Eva.” Gannicus attempted to keep his voice soft. “If Kai did something that hurt you and you don’t say something about it, then she won’t know and she will only do it again. Now what did she say?” He knew that she thought that it wasn’t important and yet it was important.

“She asked when I started being such a goody two shoes….it wasn’t even what she said that bothered me…it was who said it.” She allowed a sigh to slip between her lips. He wouldn’t understand, she knew that but, he had asked and he was expressing the words. “She’s supposed to be my friend and yet, she was also the one that spoke such things about me.”

Gannicus was unsure of how to deal with the situation. While she was right and Kai had no right to say such a thing, she also needed to see that friends fought now and then, it was by all accounts normal. Gently he smoothed at her hair as he thought about it. “I will talk to her come morning. You are welcome to sleep out here if you wish so that there you both get time to think about it and relax a little bit.” It seemed like the most logical way to go about this, that way they both had the night to think about it and they would have time to cool off as well. “And know that after this, she will also be unable to go to the party as well.” While he was sure the news would not sit well with Kai, he was sure it would make Eva feel a little better.

After all she was a beautiful girl, there was no denying that fact and her heart was just as beautiful, and Kai needed friends like her. Just as he had needed Agron to keep him out of trouble, she would eventually need someone.

“Alright.” Eva’s voice was quiet as she yawned. She wasn’t happy and yet, she would let it go for tonight. She trusted the man and as such she would not question what he said.


	21. Chapter 21

“Sleep then Eva.” Pushing himself from the couch, Gannicus allowed his hand to slip from her hair. His ears perked at the sound of Austen crying and what he assumed to be Agron moving to get him. Moving down the hallway he leaned into the room, surprised to find Nasir instead, Agron normally insisted upon taking care of him. “What’d you drug Aggie again?”

Cradling the little boy against his shoulder Nasir allowed a laugh to slip between his lips. “No, he just finally fell asleep so I don’t think he heard him.”

“Eva’s sleeping on the couch tonight. Her and Kai had a falling out.” He knew that Nasir would take it better than Agron anyways. “She’s fine, Crixius was getting her settled in when I left.

“They’ll figure it out.” Nasir really was paying attention to him, though his attentions seemed on Austen instead. That was one of the joys of having five kids he supposed, you got used to doing more than one thing at once.

Dark eyes drifted over the little boy. “Is everything alright?” He wasn’t used to the little boy being fussy. Even when he and Saxa had taken him out for the day, he had been happy and smiley, every now and then he might fuss or whine for attention but otherwise he was pretty good.

“Mmmm.” The word wasn’t really an answer and he knew it but he was trying to figure it out himself. “Pretty sure that he’s fussing because he wants Aggie, but I’m not going to wake him up. So you’re just going to have to deal with me little guy.” He wouldn’t allow the little boy to be spoiled, though he understood how Agron felt. He had spent much of his life knowing that he couldn’t have kids of his own because of where his interests lay and yet, now to have Lea, it was easy to want to coddle them and make life easy for them, yet it would not help in the long run.

***

“No, you will listen this time.” The hiss slipped through his lips. Gannicus hated to be an ass with the young girl but her attitude was driving him nuts. He would never even consider laying a hand upon her, but there were nights she made him want to drink. Right now though it was more a situation of she had hit a nerve that was still raw.

“Why should I listen? You’re just going to tell me that you didn’t do it.” Kai spat back. “You’ll tell me that mom lied to me, that it was all her fault. You’re the reason you’re divorced face it.”

The girl’s words made him think, she was right, he was the reason he was divorced but not for the reasons that Melitta had tried to say that it was. “You’re right, it is my fault; however that doesn’t change that your mother lied to you. I never hit your mother; I’d have never considered such a thing, just as I wouldn’t hit you. Ask Saxa or Sibyl, I’ve never laid a hand upon them either.  I don’t think that your mother ever understood how much I really loved her.” He paused eyes running over the young girl. “Or how much it really hurt when she left.” He wouldn’t tell her that she had cheated; it seemed useless to defame the woman. If Kai chose to look up to her, that was her choice, who was he to try and change that? “Besides that, if you’re pissed at me, what good does it do you to take it out on your friend, possibly risking your friendship with her?”

“I-I….” Kai shook her head pushing herself from the couch where she’d been sitting, brushing past him, and picking the keys up off the table as she headed out the front door. “I’ll be back.”

He knew he should fight her, tell her she couldn’t go and yet, he didn’t. She needed to think, to come to her own decision, and then she would be alright again. He was worried about her but there was nothing that he could do for her the way that she was right now.

“They sure are tough at this age aren’t they?” Crixius’ voice surprised him, he figured the man was curled up asleep somewhere.

“I’m not really up for the belittling right now.”

“And I’m not trying to belittle.” For the first time in awhile Crixius seemed sincere. “I wont pretend to know what it’s like to go through what you have. I cant imagine what it’s like to find the woman that you love in bed with someone else, better yet having to pretend like nothings wrong to your kids.”

“She wasn’t actually in bed with him but yea, that’s about what happened. Then add to it the fact that I am truly in love with two women that both kids love as well. I-It started out as a fling but now….”

“Now you’re in love with Sibyl as well.” Crixius offered a grin dropping into the chair opposite the man. “It’s not conventional hell I wont even lie and say that I understand it but isn’t that what lifes about? Taking things that everyone sees as normal and making them our own. As long as they are both happy then what does it matter if you love them both, that you wish to be with them both. It is not as if you are leading one or the other on to false hope or happiness. These days it seems like there are more and more people turning to open relationships and marriages and who knows what else. As long as you’re happy and they’re happy and the kids are ok with it what’s it matter?”

“If Melitta ever found out, she’d try and have the custody decision over turned. Kai is old enough that they would take her choice into account but Brice, I could loose him. I cant deal with that, because for him that would be hell for him. To be taken away from Derrick and the rest of his friends.” Gannicus sighed. “Fuck I don’t know what to do.”

“Don’t worry about Melitta, we’re all on your side. There isn’t a one of us that is going to say that you don’t care about your kids because we all know better than that.” Crixius was trying to make him feel better but it was true, they wouldn’t let the woman take the kids. “There isn’t anyone who could say that you don’t love those kids and there certainly isn’t a case for neglect, emotional or otherwise. Their needs are always met.”

“She’s going to try the same story that she pulled with Kai. That I hit her, so what are the chances that I will hit one of them.” He knew it was full of shit as well as anyone else who knew him did but it would be her go to excuse. “I did a lot of things I’m not proud of now. Fuck ask Aggie, we lived together, he knows the shit that I did but I never once thought about abusing her. Granted I was drunk more than I was sober for awhile but I….”

“I get it, I don’t think you hit her anymore than anyone else in this house does. I don’t even think Kai believes it but you’ve got to remember she’s caught in the middle of a battle. I know you don’t hate Melitta or even the things that she did to you but in her mind, you took the kids, so therefore you must be the bad person in this and she’s going to try and turn them against you so that she gets you back.”

“You sound like you have experience. Was there someone before Naevia?” He knew that Crixius and Agron and Duro had a sorted past, but he wasn’t exactly sure what else had happened.

“Nah, my parents were divorced. I spent the majority of my childhood hearing how my father was an awful man who didn’t give a damn about me. Then I’d go to visit him for his weekend or the summer and he’d tell me what a rotten witch my mother was and how she was the reason they were divorced. It’s hard on a kid, it gets tiring. You’re never sure who to turn to because you’re never sure what’s true and who’s lying to you.” Crixius hated reflecting on it. “My mother eventually remarried and I’d love to say it got better but it didn’t. I think it would be different in your case though because you actually care what they think, my mother didn’t.”

“I just….I don’t know anymore. I don’t mind what is going on but I guess I’ll just have to wait it out and see what happens. Speaking of Naevia, did I hear her leaving really early this morning?” He didn’t mean to be nosey but he was concerned about the woman in truth.

“Yea, tomorrow’s the anniversary of one of her best friend’s death and she wanted to go see her grave. She goes every year and watches the sun rise and goes to the lake for a little while.” Crixius let out a sigh as he thought about it. “She’ll be ok when she gets back; sometimes I think she cries it out on the way home or something.” He would never understand how she dealt with it, something like this would have broken most people but still she stood just as strong as she had before. “It was really unexpected, and I think that it bothered her more that we were living across the country when it happened. Diona was her best friend, she was killed in an accident. It was quick and hopefully painless but it nearly broke Naevia. They grew up together, and they were a lot like sisters. I haven’t seen her nearly as close to another woman until we moved back, and then she met Kat for the first time and it happened all over again.”

“Tell you what. I’ll keep an eye on Alton for the night, take her out to dinner or something, just the two of you.” He knew that it wouldn’t make it all better but it might help a little bit. He wanted so badly to help and yet there was no way to take the pain away for her. “I’d say that I’d keep an eye on Amelia too but she doesn’t necessarily need a whole lot. You’ve raised her well.”

“Thanks. It’s appreciated. We will certainly take you up on that offer, as long as you’re sure that you don’t mind.” He hated to take advantage of the man, they would manage as they had so many years before. Naevia found that simply breathing was the perfect celebration of the woman’s life, and spending time with her family always helped her to feel better. She couldn’t help but imagine what Diona would have to say about them each.

“No, don’t mind at all. You know that you can ask no matter what is going on. Mine are all grown and are growing more independent, no matter if I like it or not.” A smile quirked at Gannicus’ lips. “You can come in Sibyl.” He didn’t need more than Crixius’ eyes adjusting over his shoulder to know that the woman was lurking, not wanting to interrupt anything that might be happening. “And there’s no need to apologize.”

A laugh rumbled through Crixius’ chest as he watched the pair. It was amazing how they were. Yet, his relationship with Saxa was no less concrete.

“Kai just called.” Sibyl pressed her lips together, her eyes drifting to the floor. “She’s fine, before you start to worry about that. She just wanted you to know that she’s not upset with you, she just needs to think for awhile and figure things out.”  Her finger tips brushed against the blonde locks that fell against his face brushing them away as she sank to the arm of the chair. It didn’t surprise him that she was the one that she had called, after all she was the motherly one.


	22. Chapter 22

“For the love of fucking gods.” Agron grumbled as he started for the kitchen, causing them all to turn their attention.

“What? You trying to tell me that you don’t think it? You might as well say it.” Over the years many would have thought that Duro had learned not to push Agron when he was pissed off, yet he pushed further instead of backing down.

“You want to intervene or shall I?” Gannicus was a little afraid that the two of them would end up in a fist fight, though he wasn’t sure what they were fighting about, he could only figure it was something small again.

“No, I don’t think you depend on me. You never have Duro, you’ve always been very independent and that’s not a bad thing. You are my baby brother, I will always worry about you, it’s what I do.” Agron had thought that he knew how he felt about him and yet they were once again having this discussion.

“Boys!” Crixius’ voice caused the Germans to turn and look at him. Normally he stayed out of their arguments but this was one of the stupidest that he had heard yet. “Just listen to what you’re saying. You’re arguing about who depends on who.”

“Nasir started it!” Leave it to Duro to attempt to bring humor into the situation. It was obvious that he wasn’t upset with him, only trying to get Duro to get whatever the conversations roots had been.

“You’re right, I did start it.” Nasir was cuddling Austen to his chest. “It’s ok little guy, I’ll get your bottle.” Obviously Agron had come to get it but Duro had distracted him.

“You know, I kind of miss those days.” Gannicus offered a smile as he watched the pair with the little boy.

“Yet you will have them back soon within the young one you intend to adopt.” IT was one of those things that Sibyl would willingly point out to him but this was true.

“Don’t let Naevia hear this but I miss it too. It’s been far too long since we’ve had little feet pitter pattering across the floor.” Crixius allowed a contented sigh to slip between his lips. “I mean hell, Alton’s going to be in school soon, I cant imagine that. It doesn’t seem like he should be that old already.”

***

“He’s fine Naevia, I’m positive that you don’t have to call Gannicus and check on him again.” Crixius’ fingers wrapped within hers as they walked. “Tonight is about you darling and making sure that you are alright.”

“I’m fine. I feel better knowing that she is always with me, no matter what.” While she was upset about it, she was trying to make it seem less important. It had been many years now but the woman was still missed tremendously.

“Yet you are still human and you still feel which means it hurts.” Crixius was well aware of the feelings she must be feeling, yet she wouldn’t admit to any of them.

***

It was nice to be home and yet Agron would come to miss his friends.

“Dad? I lost Austen.” Eva’s voice was calm as she spoke. Though Agron was sure that she didn’t actually lose the little one, he had only crawled off again. He wasn’t in danger after they had baby proofed the house but this was becoming his favorite game.

“Did you check under the end tables? “ Agron shook his head. He wasn’t upset with the girl, after all this had happened to Agron and Nasir as well. He’d be happily playing with his toys and the next time that they looked down upon him, they would find that the little boy had crawled off.

Duro hadn’t believed that it was possible that he could crawl off so quickly, until he’d stopped in to look after the kids while he and Nasir had gone out for the night. In the middle of dinner, he’d gotten a panicked phone call from his brother stating that he couldn’t find him anywhere. Of course he hadn’t asked Eva if this had happened before but when Agron had started laughing at him, he’d felt even worse. It seemed like a bad version of his worst nightmare having to call his big brother and tell him he’d lost his son but neither man seemed bothered to hear this. In fact all Agron had told him was where to check and that he’d told him so before he hung up.

“I tried that, he’s not in any of his normal hiding spots.” Eva was beginning to panic now. “I swear, I was keeping an eye on him!”

“I know you were, he’s a slippery little devil. I swear he’s got your Aunt’s mischievous side.” Agron offered a grin as he looked at her. He often saw Saxa’s personality in the little boy and it was often times a comfort to him. The boy looked like him but he didn’t behave as he did, which helped because he didn’t necessarily want him to act as he had as a child or even now. “Now come on, let’s go see if we can’t find your baby brother.” He knew it would be awhile before they discussed more kids, if they discussed it at all, which would leave the little boy as the baby in their family.

“Do you think we should check the other rooms as well?” They were standing in their bedroom, so he obviously wasn’t there as Agron would have noticed him entering as he tried to finish putting away the laundry. It had taken forever for him to figure out Nair’s system of organization. The adjustment to being home more than at work had been tough but he was beginning to be comfortable with it fully at this point.

Nasir had taken care of so much around the house and in truth, over the years Agron had never realized how much he had done. However now that he was taking care of it, he certainly realized all that Nasir had done for them and he certainly wanted to thank him each and every day. He felt like he had taken advantage of him for all of these years, and yet he got the opportunity to return the favor to him. They’d worked it out so that every other night they were home, getting the weekend to relax together unless something came up where one of them was needed.

 

“Sounds like a good idea. I’m sure he didn’t get too far.” He hated to have to put up baby gates but that was beginning to look more and more like an option at this point. He wouldn’t be able to crawl off that way but it would confine him to one room which the little boy wouldn’t like. He wasn’t concerned about him getting into anything as they had made sure that the house was safe for him and yet it would save these games of hide and seek.

Slipping from the room, Eva tried across the hallway in the nursery. Despite her attempts under the crib, the dresser, in the closet, there was no little boy and her panic was beginning to grow with each minute. She felt awful for this, it was heartbreaking for her.

“Got him!” Agron’s voice came from what sounded like the kitchen but it was simply hearing that the boy had been found that made her happy. “Are you trying to scare Eva? Huh little man?” It was helpful that the boy couldn’t venture outside of the downstairs but it was still tough.

Moving into the kitchen the little girl couldn’t help but smile. “Hey you, that’s not fair to me. You’re not allowed to do that anymore because then I think that you’re gone.” Eva was trying her hardest to pull herself together again, in truth she had been near tears in fear of what could happen with the little boy.

“He’s fine kiddo.” Agron didn’t blame her, the fact that it had happened to Nasir and him as well told him that it could happen to anyone and he couldn’t blame her. It was terrifying as Duro had proven but they had found him and that’s what was important. “I think we’re going to have to start to putting up the gate.” They hadn’t needed it with Lea and Aerlia but this little guy was always curious about his surroundings and it would only get worse when he started walking. “Dad and I were just talking about that yesterday. I literally left for all of three minutes in order to let Duke out and he was just…gone.” She sighed closing her eyes. She truly was glad that he was fine.

Though they had their hands full with the dogs, they were still great with the kids. While Layla was all of eighty pounds and beautiful, Duke was huge. The poor tiny pup that Agron had brought home so beaten and in need of a home had become an over sized Great Dane, yet he was just as gentle with the kids as many tiny dogs were and he was severely over protective of sweet little Austen. They had never needed to worry about him snapping at the little boy or otherwise trying to harm him.

Austen had pulled at his ears and tail, and Duke simply laid there looking at him as if to ask what he wanted. He truly was their gentle giant and while Nasir hadn’t always been sure about him, he felt much better seeing him with the kids, and seeing how well he got along with them.

“It’s ok Eva.” Agron couldn’t help but laugh patting her on the shoulder. “It happens. I’m going to take the little guy and finish putting away the laundry, if you’d let Duke in before the neighbors are afraid of him trying to eat them or something.” He shook his head. The dog was rather large but he wouldn’t hurt anyone, though the neighbors had argued that fact more than once.

“Yea, but he’s in the backyard so he’s at least less of a threat for that.” She grinned starting for the backdoor. While all the dog had to do was walk to the fence and lean his head over it in order to look over it, the fence did keep him contained. Leaning out the backdoor she let out a whistle which brought the dog running, happily barking as he slid in the door in front of her, stopping in front of Agron to look up as if asking why he had called.

“Go lay down.” Agron shook his head as he started back for his own room, the little boy clutched at his chest. As much as he had tried to make Eva feel better, he too felt a certain amount of fear when the little boy did things like this. It was a horrifying feeling to have such a thing happen.

It was the same feeling he had felt the night they had spent in the Emergency Room with Eva when she’d had to have her appendix removed. Absolute, sheer terror. While he knew that the little boy would be alright because there wasn’t anything he could get into, he still worried about him and that was something that he didn’t like.

“You’ve got to stop that ok little man?” He couldn’t help laughing as he tickled at the little boy’s hand. He didn’t mean to lecture but it was tough sometimes. He knew that Nasir had done it for years now though and he would not ask the man to give up a job that he was beginning to love just because he couldn’t handle it so he would end up making it work. Some how, some way he would make it work out in the end.


	23. Chapter 23

As if in response, Austen let out a bubbly little laugh, pressing his hand against Agron’s chest. Though Agron couldn’t tell what he was trying to tell him, or even if he was trying to tell him anything, he adored the little boy.

He was surprised though; Nasir hadn’t called to make sure that everything was alright. The first week that they had been at this, Nasir had called insistently to make sure that Agron was alright and that he had figured everything out alright but today he hadn’t heard from the man, it was odd but he would make it work.

Setting Austen upon the floor, he closed the door, there would be no escape for him that way at least. Not that it would stop him from crawling under the bed or even into the closet. “What do you think little man? You think we can finish cleaning the closet out and surprise daddy when he gets home?”

“Would you like help?” Eva’s voice came through the door. Gannicus had called to see if he could kidnap Derrick for the weekend, he’d insisted that he and Brice were going out camping and he wanted to take his friend as well. Neither Nasir or Agron had seen harm in it and Saxa had picked him up from school with Brice.

Duro and Kat had taken Aerlia and Lea for quality time with their cousins, and Eva had called to see if Amelia and Kai wanted to come over but Crixius and Naevia had gone to visit her parents, taking the young girl with them and Kai was spending time with Sibyl and Saxa.

“If you want to.” In truth, he felt bad for the girl. She was at a tough age and it couldn’t be easy being the only one home. She never let it show though, she always seemed like she was in such a good mood and she was always willing to help. Right now, help was something that Agron would happily take. Though she had surprised him with coming home and getting the dishes done, the kitchen cleaned, and volunteering to keep an eye on Austen, he rarely had to ask her to do something because half the time she had already done it.

“Is it safe to open the door?” The girl’s voice got louder as she got closer to the door.

“Yea, just shut it behind you. Your brother is over here with me.” A smile played at his lips as he watched the little boy investigating his surroundings, seeming as though nothing would bother him.

Slipping into the room, the girl pushed it shut behind herself. “No, no…” She sighed taking the shirt from Agron’s hands. “Didn’t dad teach you how to fold laundry?” Sometimes she forgot that she had spent more time at home with Nasir than Agron had, especially growing up. This meant that she had the time to gain these skills, and it made her understand better.

“No, that he hasn’t.” Agron’s eye brows rose at the young girl. He was a little surprised that she had spoken out against him, even though it wasn’t malicious in nature. “What am I doing wrong?” One of these days they would figure out their way, instead of his way and Nasir’s but they seemed to be a little ways from that still.

Smoothing the shirt out on the bed, Eva demonstrated it for him. Trying her hardest not to laugh as Agron’s eyebrows crept closer and closer to his forehead. “Don’t look at me like that, it’s how dad insists that it should be done. He says any other way and they don’t fit into the drawers the way that they should. Of course he also insists that you have too many clothes but that’s just one of those things that at one point or another I think he’s told all of us.”

It was true that more than once Nasir had insisted that they all owned way too many clothes and they needed to downsize. However, the thing that often made Agron laugh was that Nasir had the most clothes of any of them.

“Just put it in the dresser.” Agron shook his head, taking another shirt from the basket that Austen was now attempting to figure out how to crawl into. “What did your dad teach you how to fold the laundry too?”

The little boy seemed determined to ignore Agron though as he took hold of the edge of the basket, holding himself up as he stood against it. Eva’s lips turned up into a smile as she watched him. “He’s been doing that for a little while now.”

It was then that Agron realized what he had truly been missing out on so many things trying to make a living. He’d missed Aerlia’s first steps along with Lea’s and so many other things as well.  Yet, this time he wouldn’t miss out on such a thing. The little boy was head strong and would be walking soon, probably earlier than anyone had ever anticipated.

“His decision or has your dad been instigating it?” He was pretty sure that it was the little boy but Nasir loved to find out just how much each of his kids could do.

“The first time dad helped him with the coffee table but after that he was doing it all by himself.” Eva’s eyes shifted over him trying to figure out what Agron was thinking. “You’ve done what you thought was best for us.” She couldn’t help the weak smile that adorned her lips. She could only figure that he was questioning his decision to work.

“I would ask you how you knew what I was thinking but I’m going to figure that it is another thing that you learned from your father.” Agron adored the little girl. She was beautiful and smart, creative and funny but the scariest part about her was that she could look at a person and tell what they were thinking much as Nasir did.

“Well, no, your behavior is just kind of predictable. When you’re thinking your brow furrows and it gets worse when it’s about us.” Eva had been living with him long enough now that she understood his moods.

***

“You did what?” Nasir stood, mouth a gape as he looked at Agron He couldn’t believe he had possibly heard the other mans words right.

“I let Eva drive my car? You seem surprised?” Agron’s brow furrowed as he watched the man trying to decide what he was thinking.

“You let her take the Charger out?” That car was like Agron’s baby and he was having trouble fathoming such a thing. “I-I….you hate letting Duro drive it much less a driver in training.”

“She has her permit, she’s doing really well. It’s not your every day car, I made sure of that remember?” Agron grinned as he looked at him. “If she can handle it then, she can handle just about anything.” It was true that Agron had always loved fast cars, this one had been his baby and he had held no stops when it came to making sure that it was everything that he had wanted. The young girl had handled it well though and he was impressed. “Besides she deserved it after everything that she’s done around the house. I know she wants to be with Amelia and Kia and not us but….” He sighed as he looked at Nasir. He knew that this was normal, she was supposed to be ready to go out with her friends, have fun and not want to be at home and yet, he wasn’t sure that he was ready for it though.

“She’s growing up too fast, hell they all are.”

“Yea, I know. Austen was pulling himself up and standing up today.” Agron wondered what Nasir’s reaction to him knowing about this would be. He hadn’t mentioned it before after all. Though Eva had indicated that that this was not the first time that the little boy had done so, which told him that Nasir had neglected to tell him about it.

“Yea, he started that a little while ago. I know that you wanted to take the brunt of raising him and your brother and I were talking today.” Nasir nuzzled in against the man’s shoulder hoping that the words would make sense to him. “We’ve decided that maybe it would be best for you to work from home. That way you can be here with the little guy. You can enjoy the things that you’ve missed with the other kids and still get to do what you enjoy for work as well.”

In truth it had been Duro’s idea but Nasir and Gannicus had agreed with him. Agron had dedicated many years to what had been Duro’s dream and now he wanted to do the same for his older brother. There was a happy medium in this and that was where he was trying to get.

“I-I….” Agron wasn’t surprised. It was something that he and Duro had talked about before but he couldn’t leave him short handed, but now with Nasir, it seemed like the best time for it if he was going to do it. “Yea, it sounds nice. It’ll take adjusting to but I think I could get used to the idea. How long did it take Duro to convince you both that this was the right thing to do?”

“Not very long. Actually he made the same offer to Gannicus but he’s insistent that with Sibyl and Saxa at home, along with the older kids, everything will be fine.” Nasir’s eyes drifted to look at Agron, watching his face as he continued to speak. “You’re sure that this is what you wish for?” He wouldn’t push him to make the decision but if it was what Agron wished to do, then they would make it work.

“Yes, actually Eva and I were talking about how much I have missed of their lives.” Agron had always insisted on making the important events, Eva’s horse shows, Derrick’s band concerts, things of that nature but it was in the little things that he missed that he was having such a hard time. The trips to the park, going out for ice cream, the truly simple things in life, and that killed him. Though he would never admit it his brother was right, it was time for him to take time away and enjoy those very things. Nasir’s blessing only made it worth that much more to him and he was glad to have it, and glad to see him happy doing what he was doing as well.  “And I’m assuming that you’re enjoying yourself?”

“Yea. It’s kind of nice being needed again” Nasir offered a smile as he looked upon the bigger man. “I mean, I’ve always been needed here by the kids but this is different. It’s like being a part of something other than my family. In truth I’ve missed it.”

Agron’s chin dropped allowing him to nuzzle at Nasir’s neck. “Is it that you’ve missed it or the sex in strange places?” The words were spoken as a growl against the Syrian’s neck.

“Well, both really.” Nasir’s finger tips brushed against his chest, fingers moving to run through his hair. “But honestly, as long as it is with you, I couldn’t care less where the sex is. We’ve gotten creative enough here at home.” While they kept it contained to their room and the shower while the kids were around, that didn’t mean that they weren’t creative about how it was done.

“Duro appreciates such things.” Agron offered a grin pulling Nasir closer to him. “Get some sleep Nasir. You look like you’re hardly holding your eyes open.”

In truth, Agron was right, he was exhausted but at the same time he wanted Agron, wanted him more than anything. Yet, he knew that they both needed sleep. There would be plenty of time soon enough, just not tonight.

Curling up against Agron’s shoulder, Nasir settled in within his arms, allowing his eyes to close as he laid there. It wasn’t long before he gave up fighting sleep and soon his breathing began to slow and it was obvious to Agron that the man was lost to sleep. Leaning down he pressed his lips to the top of his head. “Good night baby.” The words were but a whisper as he spoke them trying not to wake him. He had made him the happiest man alive for so many years now and no matter what, he would do anything and everything he could for him.

***

“Yes Duro.” Agron sighed adjusting the phone against his shoulder. “I swear to you, I am alright with this, when is the last time that I allowed something like this to happen that I didn’t like without me saying something?”

“Well I know that, I just wanted to be sure though. If you are truly alright with it then that is what we will move forward with. Besides since you’re just keeping track of the book keeping, I’m pretty sure that you can do that at home. Especially since it’s just Lea and Austen most of the time and really the afternoon it’s just Austen with Lea in preschool.” He had faith in his older brother and he couldn’t help wondering why the man didn’t have as much faith in himself. He would be able to manage it, just as Nasir had managed to figure it all out while he was home. “It wont come right away like everything else that you’ve tried to do over the years but it will help that you have experience in this one.”

“Have I mentioned recently just how proud of you I really am?” Agron knew the answer, he rarely told Duro that he was proud of him even though he should have several times over the years.

“For what this time?” Duro could only imagine what it was that Agron was talking about and he needed him to narrow it down for him.

“For everything. You’ve had a rough couple of years and you’ve bounced right back. From nearly dieing to the girls spending the first four months of their lives in the hospital, you’ve managed to keep calm and make it through and that’s something that I should have told you I was proud of time and time again and yet I haven’t.” Agron had never been good at talking about how he felt, he would much rather act upon the emotions then sit around and talk about it. “Yet he knew that Duro needed to hear it from him every now and then.

“Mom would love what you’ve become as well Agron.” It was rare for Duro to speak of the woman and yet he needed Agron to hear the words, to know that he really did mean what he had said. “She’d love seeing that you are happy, that she had the grandkids that she had always wanted, even if they aren’t by blood and most of all, she’d truly be in love with Nasir.” While Agron might not have always known that he wasn’t into women, Duro had always suspected that their mother had.

In fact Duro remembered the day that Agron had called him to tell him that he had started seeing Nasir. His brother had broken down in tears, fearing that his baby brother would disown him for the fact but it had been anything but. Duro had instead told him that he was happy for him and that he wanted him to be happy. It had been a night of celebrations for the two of them once Duro had gotten home. They had laughed together, they had cried together and in fact they had gotten drunk that night.

“She’d be proud of you as well Duro. Married to a beautiful woman who keeps you in your place and loves you with all of her heart, three beautiful little girls who have been your world and always will be and a business that you have built from the ground up. Who would have figured it would have ever happened to you little brother.” Sometimes Agron wondered why his little brother didn’t give himself enough credit and yet, there was so much that he could do that he didn’t consider. He loved his little brother and he wished that he would see that.

“I’ll let Kat know you said that. She’ll be glad to see that someone else recognizes her hard work in trying to keep me out of trouble.” Duro was teasing of course as he knew that his brother was right. Kat really did rule the house, and he was more than willing to let that happen no matter what was going on. It had been that way since they had started dating and he hadn’t planned for it to change in marriage, so he was alright with that.

“Oh, she knows that I love her. Besides it takes a special breed of woman to deal with you Duro.” While Agron would tease his brother normally, it was true. It took a special breed to deal with any German really and Agron was no exception. There had been many ups and downs to he and Nasir’s relationship and he wouldn’t deny that no matter who asked.

“Yea, I know. She’s been through hell with me and she’s still here. I guess she’s a keeper.” Duro’s laughter was hard to contain.

“I damn well better be.” Katrina’s voice could be heard from the other side of the phone. She had obviously just wandered into the room and only hearing one side of the conversation she obviously wasn’t sure what was going on. However, her good natured retort told Agron that she wasn’t taking offense to whatever could possibly have been said. She knew that when the brothers were involved, it meant that there was a playful nature in what was said.


	24. Chapter 24

“Lemme talk to her for a minute hey?” In truth he was almost positive that Duro was offended when he called only to talk to Kat, and he tried his hardest not to do it very often.

“I see how it is, I’m suddenly chopped liver.” Duro’s words were followed with laughter though to show that he was only harassing his older brother. “Hey Kat? Aggie wants to borrow you.”

The woman’s voice was soon on the other end of the phone. “Your brother’s pouting, I hope you know that.”

“He’s spent most of his life like that. I wanted to know though, have you seen Nasir lately?” Agron was sure that he probably wouldn’t get an answer but he needed to ask anyways.

“Agron.” Kat sighed. “You know as well as I do that I shouldn’t tell you this, but no I haven’t. Why is something wrong?”

“No, I just noticed that he’s happy…like really happy and I wondered if maybe you had a hand in it.” He had meant to thank the woman if she had but it was growing obvious to him that that wasn’t it.

“Wasn’t me, but we both know that he wont talk to anyone else though so, I would have to say that maybe that means that he is actually happy with his life.” It was a revelation that Kat was more than happy to hear. Her goal had always been to get him to a point in which he didn’t need her help anymore. She would always be there if something came up but knowing that he was successfully dealing on his own, made her heart soar with pride.

“That was what my hope was but I wanted to check with you and see what you had come up with. I-I had always hoped that he was happy with me but, I almost lost him once and didn’t know it, I can’t handle a second time.” Perhaps he had never fully dealt with not knowing how far Nasir would go until he had found him nearly dead.

“Agron…stop it.” Kat’s voice was soothing as she spoke. “It was never your fault, most people never know until it’s too late to deal with it. You did what you could, now don’t make me come over there and kick your ass.” Much like Saxa, he didn’t dare upset this woman, there was a good chance that she would do exactly as she had threatened. “Speaking of Nasir where is he?” She found it odd that Agron would be talking about him with him in the house, and yet with it being Saturday she knew that he wasn’t at work either since none of them worked weekends unless it was absolutely necessary.

“He went out shopping with Eva. I was going to do it later on but he insisted that he’d get the grocery shopping done and she was in need of jeans again. Kid never seems to stop growing.” It was true, it seemed like they were always buying her clothes of one kind or another.

“Doesn’t Nasir hate shopping?” Kat was just as surprised as he had been by the news. Yet Agron was pretty sure that it was Nasir’s way of trying to help out, seeing as he wasn’t home during the week anymore.

“Uh huh.” Agron could hear the confusion in her voice, but she was also smart enough to figure it out.

“Alright, well, that’s a step in the right direction I suppose. Anyhow your brother wants to talk to you I think, he’s trying to take the phone away from me and insisting that he must speak with you.” Sounded like Duro alright, he was like a cat sometimes, if you ignored him, he would only get more persistent and that didn’t help when it came to phones.

“Ok. I’ll talk to you later on then Kat. If you’d send me over a time that’s good for you this week. Then we can get together for dinner one night or something.” He did miss his brother’s company no matter how much he insisted otherwise.

“I’ll let her know.” Duro’s voice was a shock for what he had figured was going to be Kat. “You mind if I kidnap Derrick one day next weekend? I’m looking at picking up tickets to a ball game.” Duro was beginning to miss the idea of a son, he loved his girls more than anything else but he also wished that he had a boy to share these types of things with. Though until he had one of his own, he was content with kidnapping his brother’s until he could have one of his own.

“No that’s fine.” Agron would allow it without asking Nasir because he knew that the other man wouldn’t argue it either. “You know, you could always break one of the girls in to go with you.” He was only teasing, though Faith was beginning to become a tom boy, even at her young age.

“Faith had a fit the other day because Kat put her in a dress to go see her parents.” Duro was amused, he’d never seen anything more ugly in his life but Kat had insisted that she would wear it. At least until the young girl had pulled it off standing in the living room and insisted upon not putting it back on, and then Kat had finally given in and allowed her to wear the shorts and shirt that the little girl had wanted to wear instead.

“Wonderful.” Agron was glad that both Lea and Aerlia were content in whatever they wore. Of course he had never attempted to put them in a dress since they were little girls. Nasir occasionally insisted such things but even that was rare.

“Alright Aggy, I’m going to go and get some stuff around the house done. Enjoy your weekend hey?” He was sure that they would speak again before the weekend was over but it was like this every time they hung the phone with each other. Maybe it was the losses they had suffered early on in life, but it was their way of telling each other that they loved one another without actually saying the words.

“Alright. Have some fun this weekend hey Duro?” He knew his little brother enough to know that he would spend the weekend taking care of the house and everything else that needed to be done if someone didn’t suggest a break to him.

“We’ll see, I’ve got some stuff that needs to be done before Kat’s birthday later this week. I’ll call you and let you know what the details are for next weekend though.”

“Alright, have her get in touch with me too about when she’s got time to come over for dinner. We’ll celebrate her birthday or something.” For the most part they tried to get together at least once a week it was a far cry from the everyday that it used to be when Duro was living there but it was better than some sibling he supposed.

“Will do. Later Aggie.” With that Duro was gone, leaving Agron to hang up the phone dropping it on the counter. 

Austen was asleep in his swing in the living room. Agron would have moved him to his crib but that would have only woke the little boy and he wasn’t sure that he could get him back to sleep. He was almost positive that the little boy was coming down with something because of how fussy he had been.  Yet he couldn’t help wondering if he wasn’t getting his first tooth.

As if he knew that daddy was thinking about him the little boy let out a wail. Pushing himself from the counter where he was leaned, Agron moved into the living room. “Hey, what’s the commotion all about????” Scooping the little boy up he cradled him close to his chest, fingers rubbing in soothing motions over his back. “Maybe we should see if daddy wont pick up some of that numbing gel while he’s out huh little guy?”

Austen settled in again his shoulder, happy to be cuddled, though the wails turned to whimpers. Moving back into the kitchen Agron managed to awkwardly pick the phone up typing the message out to Nasir.

He was hoping it wouldn’t be long before Nasir responded. He wished that there was something more that he could do for him but Agron was at a loss, this was one of the many things that he had missed with the girls, Nasir had taken great care of them, but it left Agron at a loss.

The phone buzzing across the counter brought a new hope though. Scooping it up Agron couldn’t help smiling. All it simply said was ‘ Can do. In the mean time, try yogurt.’

It seemed like an odd idea but at this point Agron would try almost anything to make sure that the little boy wasn’t in pain. “Daddy says we should try yogurt. Do you even like yogurt?” While they had been introducing him to new foods, that wasn’t one that he remembered ever trying. Though if it meant that he might not be in pain, he would try just about anything. Pulling over the high chair, he carefully settled the little boy within, heart breaking as he began to scream once more.

            “Just a minute little guy.” Agron let a sigh slip between his lips. He was trying so hard not to let his anxiety show, it wouldn’t help any in this situation and yet it still hurt to hear him cry. Grabbing one of the baby spoons and the yogurt from the fridge he pulled up a chair. “Alright little man, let’s try this and see how it goes.”

            All that he could hope at this point was that Nasir was right and that poor little Austen could stop crying. If the last visit to the doctor had been heartbreaking for him, this must be what hell was like.

            Slipping the spoon from the container he held it to the little boys lips waiting for his reaction. He remembered the few times that Nasir had spoken of the girls refusing to eat as they teethed and if that was the case here then he was at a loss for what to do. He couldn’t help smiling though as the little boy cautiously took the spoon into his mouth.

            Sweet little Austen made a face as if he was trying to decide if he liked the taste or not but eventually he swallowed despite the face that he made that only made Agron assume that maybe he wasn’t impressed by it. Yet even so, Austen allowed him to offer another spoonful which he took from him.

            The phone ringing made Agron sigh pushing himself from the chair. “Hand on little guy.” Adjusting the phone he answered it. “Hello?”

            “Hey, it’s me.” Nasir could tell the frustration in Agron’s voice. “Sorry for bothering you. I forgot to mention that there’s a sippy cup in the cupboard, it’s the green one with handles that you can try or you can put his pacifier in the fridge and see if that helps. We should be home shortly, but I wanted to make sure that you were doing alright still.”

            “We’re hanging in there. He’s eating, he doesn’t seem so impressed with the yogurt but maybe just maybe it’ll grow on him.” Agron couldn’t figure out if he was enjoying it or not but if it was going to help then he would try it.

            “Oh, believe me if he doesn’t like it, you’re going to know about it. He will most definitely spit it back up at you. Just incase you’re curious, he really doesn’t like squash, learned that the hard way. Anyhow, is there anything else you’d like me to grab while we’re out?” 


	25. Chapter 25

“A teething ring might be helpful but otherwise I think we’ve got the bases covered.” Agron couldn’t help laughing as Austen reached out trying to take the phone from Agron. “No, you’re just going to chew on it.”

   “Is he trying to take the phone from you?” Nasir had experienced this and Agron was right, chances were he would try and chew on it.

“Yea, he’s probably mad cause I don’t have enough hands to try and feed him and not drop the phone too.” Agron wasn’t the most coordinated when it came to thing such as this, he would figure it out in time Nasir was sure but for the time being he would make whatever talents he had work.

“Alright, I’ll let you go and see you when we get home. Love you.” Eva could be heard making noises of disgust in the background, he was sure that it was playful and couldn’t help laughing.

“Love you too. Oh and tell her she’s grounded if she doesn’t knock it off.” While it was hard to tell what Eva would do sometimes, he was pretty sure that   a statement such as that would put the girl on edge. Hanging the phone up he turned his attentions to Austen again. “So little man, that was your daddy, he says he’ll be home soon.”

While most people gave him a hard time about talking to the little boy, it was soothing to him, made him feel less alone when there was no one else around and with any hope it would help to increase Austen’s vocabulary skills.

 While Agron had always called Nasir little man, the Syrian had been the one who had started calling him by it. For Agron it had been a tough adjustment but he was beginning to make it and that was helpful to a certain degree.

***

“Here, let me take him off your hands.” Nasir was scooping the little boy from his chest before Agron could argue. “Hey little man, have you been good today? Huh?” Thankfully at least for now Austen had stopped crying. Though he was still running a minor temp and his poor little cheeks were rosy. The worst of it though was that he sounded all stuffed up, leaving Agron to worry about him despite the hundreds of times that Nasir had insisted that he would be fine.

“He’s acted like he’s sleepy but he just wont give in and go to sleep, which is why he was laying on my chest. I thought maybe he’d settle in and finally go to sleep.” There were a many nights that they just couldn’t get the little boy to sleep and despite it, he would settle in on Agron’s chest and finally drift off to sleep. Agron hadn’t ever figured out why it was that he would do it this way but it seemed to be a comfort to the little boy. As if listening to his daddy’s heart finally put him to sleep, and there was nothing that would change it for him.

“Poor little guy.” Nasir’s fingers ran over the little boys back, trying his hardest to make him feel better. Eva was upstairs trying on clothes and knowing the girl she was probably sending pictures to Amelia and Kai trying to figure out how she had done. That was one of the things that Nasir just hadn’t ever mastered. He had no sense in style, what he wore, he wore, if it didn’t look great, he couldn’t care less. He certainly wasn’t the stereotypical gay man that everyone pictured who had a great fashion sense. Though Agron was the same way, perhaps it was the reason that they got along so well. “Do you think you’d like to swing for awhile?”

Agron knew that the little boy would not be answering, and he was sure that Nasir knew it as well. Instead of waiting for one though Nasir set the little boy in the swing, cranking it up before he sank in beside Agron on the couch. “You look exhausted. Being a stay at home daddy getting to you?”

“No, just been an emotionally trying day and I guess it’s starting to catch up with me, once Austen’s asleep then I will actually consider going to sleep.” It was obvious that after the last bout of being sick, Agron still hadn’t learned his lesson when it came to taking care of himself.

“I’ve got him, you’ve taken care of him all day. Go, take some time to yourself, get some sleep. I’m sure that he’ll be out soon anyways and Eva is fine all by herself. She’s been raised pretty well and I’m almost positive she wouldn’t do anything that she knows that she shouldn’t.”

Nasir was right, the young girl would rather lose her closest friends then end up betraying her fathers. She had proven that with Kai and it did not surprise either of the men. In fact it made their hearts soar with pride for the young girl, she would be just fine in the real world that much they were sure of.

“Are you sure?” Normally Agron would have argued the fact but he just couldn’t think of a reason to argue right now. He was exhausted, he wanted to sleep but he felt like being the little boys father, he shouldn’t leave him in Nasir’s lap to take care of.

“I’m positive Aggie. How many nights did you stay up making sure that Lea was alright so that I could sleep?” Leaning to press a kiss to the man’s lips Nasir couldn’t help grinning. “Just go and get some sleep. We will be fine, we are in this together and together we will take care of what needs to be done. Right now that s that you need to go to bed before you end up sick which will only make these matters worse.”

“Alright, as long as you’re sure.” Pushing himself from the couch, he allowed a yawn that he had long since been suppressing slip between his lips. He would get used to this, he was bound and determined he would.


	26. Chapter 26

 

Watching the man disappear Nasir shook his head. It must be a common trait of men from East of the Rhine to be so damn stubborn since both he and Duro were both so.

Carefully he scooped Austen up again, heading for the kitchen. “You gotta start feeling better little man. You’re worrying your daddy.”

This was one of the many times that he wished that his mother was still there. She would have some kind of remedy for this. While he had experienced it with Aerlia and Lea, each time was different. Aerlia hadn’t fussed much until the very end and Lean had been fussy but hers had been more in her ears, as if her ears hurt all the time.

Grabbing the bottle he returned to the living room. “You want this little guy?” Nasir found himself laughing. “Yea, that’s what I thought, you’re hungry.”

Sinking into Agron’s recliner he found himself hoping that maybe the little boy would finally go to sleep. While he didn’t mind staying up with him, he knew that chances were he would awaken at some point during the night.

Austen happily took the nipple within his lips as it was offered to him.

The quiet creak of the chair as Nasir rocked it was the only sound other than the occasional sound of Eva’s feet moving upstairs. Layla had gone to bed with Agron and Duke was probably upstairs keeping an ever vigilant watch over Eva.

The one thing that Nasir could be thankful for was the fact that Duke had stopped eating anything he could. As a pup, he had eaten a hole in the kitchen door because he was lonely, while they were gone. While Agron had been pissed off about it at first, he had finally managed to come to the conclusion that Duke hadn’t meant anything by it and he was only lonely. After calling upon a friend of Saxa’s, Lugo, the door had been fixed and the lesson had been learned.

A glance down at the little boy told Nasir that he was in fact finally asleep. He should have figured that with a full belly he would have drifted off to sleep, happy that he had finally found comfort.

It was funny to look back at the ways that their lives had changed. It had been fifteen years since he had happily taken Agron as the only man for him. They had gone from that to happily taking Eva in a few years later. He could hardly remember what life had been like before the kids. They had quickly grown to be the center of their world and he’d never change that.

“I love you little guy.” Nasir leaned down pressing a kiss to her forehead. Moving he laid the little on in his crib before slipping across the hall into their room.

***

“Eva, would you unload the dishwasher and reload it please?”

The girl was sitting at the kitchen table, her homework spread from one end of the table to the other, surrounding her computer. “Eventually, I’ve got to figure out why my computer is deciding that now is a good time to not open my fucking paper.”

“Eva!” She had tried her damndest figuring that Nasir wasn’t within ear shot but much to her dismay, he certainly was. “Havent we talked about this?” His eyes turned to look at Agron as if he were trying to tell him he’d told him so.

“Call your uncle. I’m sure he can figure it out.” Agron had seen Duro fix much worse and all Agron wanted to do was throw it across the room. Yet his baby brother had convinced him that that was not a good idea.

“God I hope so. It’s due in two days and it’s take me forever to write.” The poor girl looked ready to cry as she sat there.

“Just settle down I’ll call Duro and see what he’s got to say about it.” Dialing the phone Agron waited patiently for him to answer.

“Yo, what’s up Aggie?” Duro sounded in a pretty good mood which meant that he should be fairly helpful, and even better he should be patient.

“Eva’s having issues with her computer. I guess it’s working great other than it wont open up here paper which is not making her feel very comfortable with the fact that it’s due in a couple of days.”

“Lemme talk to her. I know how you feel about computers and if I try and explain it to you then you’re liable to cuss at it and possibly even toss it across the room.” Duro knew his brother well.

Agron’s willingness to learn technology was less then none. He would try and learn but it wasn’t long before his German temper would take over and he would cuss and threaten whatever he was working with. Duro knew that and he found it nearly impossible to work with him when he was like that so he tried to skip it whenever it was possible.

Handing the phone over to Eva, he beamed with pride as the girl began happily conversing in German with Duro. It had been her chosen language in high school but one that she was bored with as well.

“Right, I haven’t installed anything new.” The change in language made Agron figure that Duro had switched on her but it was something that she had mastered with ease.

“Alright, what I’m going to suggest is uninstall your word processing program and then reinstall it. If that doesn’t help out then give me a call back and we’ll see what we cant figure out.” Duro hoped that would help her, he could hear the panic in the girl’s voice and he felt bad for her. He remembered well the stress of school and knew that this was not helping her at all. “Oh do me a favor and tell your dad that he should be expecting a call from you Aunt Saxa.”

“Should I tell him if it’s good news or bad?” She could only imagine that this would be Agron’s first question.

Duro couldn’t help laughing as he spoke. “Nah, let him figure it out, it’s usually more fun that way. Like I said though, if you still cant get that figured out give me a call and I’ll come look at it alright?”

“Alright, thanks Uncle Duro.” While she was still ready to panic, she felt a little bit better about what was going on. He sounded optimistic which meant that it was possible that there was a chance for it to get better. Maybe he paper wouldn’t be lost after all, and maybe she wouldn’t end up having to rewrite it.

“No problem kiddo.” With that Duro hung up.

Setting the phone on the table Eva’s eyes turned up for a minute. “He says you should expect Aunt Saxa to call. He wouldn’t say if it was good news or not though.” She figured it was best to head the question off before he could ask it. It was normally easier that way after all.

“Well alright, that’s good to know. That normally means she’s upset about something.” Pursing his lips together Agron tried to figure out what would possibly have upset the woman and despite his best efforts, he just wasn’t coming up with anything. “Oh well, I’m sure I’ll hear about it when she calls to tell me about whatever it is she’s calling about.”

“When were here and Ganny supposed to make the adoption official?” Nasir would come up with the best answers whenever Agron wasn’t thinking. It seemed as though he intentionally waited for such occurrences but Agron knew that this wasn’t true. Nasir didn’t intentionally do anything most of the time, unless it had to do with one of the kids or Agron and even then it was normally just loving them.

“Sometime this week I think.” Agron pursed his lips. He knew that Gannicus had said when but with everything else that had been going on as of late, he had forgotten what the man had said.

“Well then, that’s probably what she’s calling about then.” Nasir could only shake his head as he moved from the kitchen. “Alright I’m taking Lea and Aerlia out to get clothes.” He hated it more than anything but Agron’s patience for it was less than his and he knew that it would be better he went.

“K I’ll see you later.” Agron wished that he could help him out and yet he knew that there was no easy way about it when it came to the young girls. Most of the other girls their age were happy in their pretty dresses and they preferred t-shirts and jeans. For Nasir and Agron it was hard to watch the little girls come home upset in tears because of things that had been said.

Nasir’s first reaction had been to take them from school and do exactly what they had done for Eva and Derrick, home school them. Yet Agron had convinced him to try and wait it out. Agron knew that he enjoyed working, and he was beginning to enjoy being at home. As such, it made sense to try and keep the girls in school, and despite their issues with peers they were doing very well.

Time and time again though, they had each held onto one, cuddling up on the couch, trying to make them understand that no matter what they truly were very special and that no matter what anyone said, they would always be loved. Yet, trying to explain this to a preschooler and kindergartener was not as easy as it sounded.

***

“So what did Saxa want?” Nasir was pulling his shirt over his head, a sight that nearly took Agron’s breath away but it most certainly lost him when it came to listening to the man.

“Huh?” Agron’s tongue slipped over his lips, all he truthfully wanted to do was to lick, kiss and bite at exposed skin. Yet he would settle for having him within his arms for the time being.

“I said what did Saxa want?” Nasir often wondered what it was that caused Agron to decide what he wanted to hear but sometimes it could be a pain, having to repeat himself several times in order for Agron to hear him.

“Oh she called to tell me about the little one. She wont say it but I think she’s a little disappointed that they ended up with a babe.” It had been a hard decision for them, but they had finally decided on a baby who was only a couple of months older then Austen was. “But I know Saxa and while right now she might be let down, by the end of it she will be happy and she will love the little one as her own. Now are you going to come here or am I going to have to make you do so?”

“I’ll come and sit with you but I’m not sure that I can lay down right now.”

“What’s the matter?” Agron’s brows furrowed in concern as he eyed him. He didn’t sound sick, so that couldn’t be what it was.

“Backs bothering me. There’s not much that you can do for it though, I’m not even sure I can let you touch it though.” Any other time he would love for Agron to rub at it, work the kinks out of it and make it feel better but right now, in all honesty it hurt like hell even without someone rubbing at it.

“You tried muscle relaxers?” He hated to suggest drugs but if it would ease the pain then he knew it was worth a try. 


	27. Chapter 27

“I’ve tried a little bit of everything at this point. I think it’s just getting worse instead of better.” Nasir knew that Agron would worry and that was exactly why he hadn’t told him before. “I’m pretty sure it’s just a muscle that I pulled and now it’s deciding to tighten up. It’s either that or one of who knows how many different injuries while I was a kid acting up.”

“You really should have it looked at. If you cant even lay down at night without being in pain, that’s not a good thing.” Agron wouldn’t have taken his own advice if he were in Nasir’s shoes but he hoped that Nasir would all the same. He’d do anything for Nasir at this point, he couldn’t remember the last time that he had asked him not touch him, had not wanted him to at least try rubbing at it to make it better and that bothered him.

“I will, I swear.” A smile formed at Nasir’s lips as he watched Agron try to adjust on the bed and not upset Layla who was sleeping at the foot of the bed. He would never understand why the dog insisted on sleeping on Agron’s side of the bed when there was plenty of room on his side of the bed since he was so much shorter than the other man. “Layla, come here.” He snapped his fingers causing the dog to sit up, eyes turning to look at him. She made no attempt at moving though and after a couple of minutes allowed her head to flop back down against the bed. No matter if Agron argued it or not, she was always going to be his dog. That was all there was to it, she was his baby and she wouldn’t let him forget that.

“She’s fine. At least she’s not trying to sleep in between us anymore.” That had been one thing that Agron had needed to put a stop to very early on, he didn’t mind that she slept on the bed, but she was supposed to sleep at the foot of the bed and he had enforced that above all else. After all there had been nothing worse than thinking he was about to cuddle up to Nasir while he was half asleep and ending up being licked by the dog.

“I’m still trying to figure out how Eva sleeps with Duke on the bed. That dogs a monster to begin with, I’d have thought that he took up the whole bed on her but she swears that it’s no big thing.”  Nasir shook his head but paused, a hiss slipping between his lips causing Agron to cringe.

“Yea, it’s time to get it looked at. You want me to give Duro a call and ask him to come look after the kids. We can get you looked at?”  It wasn’t really a question, he knew that Nasir was in pain and that bothered him.

“Maybe you’re right.” It wasn’t like Nasir to give in without a fight and that told Agron that either he had been in pain longer than he had told him or he was just in that much pain. Neither thought was one that Agron really liked.

***

“Hey, how’s he doing?” Duro offered a smile over the back of the couch, Austen was settled in his arms. The sweet little boy looked ready to fall asleep again at any moment.

“Sore.” Agron sighed, his head turning to peek over his shoulder at the tiny man. More than anything he wished that he could make him feel better. “Why don’t you go and lay down, I’ll be in shortly.”

“Sounds good to me.” Nasir moved from the room, heading for theirs.

Duro’s eyes turned up to his big brother’s trying to figure out what was hidden behind his eyes. “What is it?” It wasn’t hard to tell that something just wasn’t right but he couldn’t put his finger on what that something was.

“Oh, it’s nothing.” Agron shrugged it off as he sank to the couch beside Duro. “Just bothers me that there’s nothing that I can do to help him out. Its an aggravation of something he did as a kid. Basically their suggestion is let’s give him a cortisone shot and tell him to rest and that’ll fix it. I hate to tell them this but something tells me it won’t be that simple.”

“Which part the getting better or the getting rest?” Duro could only figure that Agron had meant getting better but sometimes he surprised him.

“Both. Fuck, this means I’ll have to deal with Crixius too. For the love of god that’s not going to be any fun.” Agron sighed.

“I thought you and Crixius were getting along?” Duro shook his head. “Really Aggie I’m over what happened with Nae. She’s happy, besides if it wasn’t for her, I wouldn’t have found Katrina and you know as well as I do, she is my world.”

“Oh. No I just meant that you know how he can be in situations like this.” Agron shook his head. He had become like a second brother to Agron much as he hated to admit it but there were still times that he got on his nerves and pushed his buttons. Something told him that this was going to be one of those times. “Go home to your family Duro. I’m sorry to pull you away from them.”

“Nah, it’s fine. The girls are asleep and Kat was working on some proposal for the clinic that she’s trying to start.” Duro simply shook his head. “She knows how proud I am of her, but you know, part of me wants so badly for her to be at home with us.”

“But think of all the people that she’ll be able to help. People like we us when we were kids.” He hated to have to play with emotions when it came to Duro but he knew that Duro would need to hear it at this point. It was true, after the hell their father had put them through, they could have both used a therapist but it just wasn’t in the cards for them. Instead Agron had turned to work and Duro had delved into the darker sides of life. He had turned to the slime of the world, drinking, dealing drugs and from the way his behavior had seemed from time to time perhaps even doing them. Yet they had each managed to straighten themselves out, of course it had taken time but they were very different people now.

“I know. I know.” Carefully he laid the now sleeping Austen within Agron’s arms. “Like I said, it’s selfish of me and I know that but I can’t help feeling a little selfish. This clinic will mean the world to her though, I know that. Her and Crixius have been working at it forever trying to get through all of the paper work and such. I just, I know what it means to her and….Look I’ll let you go.” Pushing himself from the couch Duro started for the door.

“Remember something Duro.” Agron’s voice caused the younger brother to pause in the door way to the living room. “Remember that it is normal to wish to have loved ones near by, to miss them, and yet we must let them live their lives. More importantly though Duro. Remember that I will always be here if you need to talk.”

“I know Agron, now go take care of Nasir. I’ll be by in the morning to get Derrick for the game.” It was something that both he and the young boy had been looking forward to.

“Later.” He watched his brother disappear before he got up locking the door before he wandered down the hallway. Lea lay asleep in her bed, the teddy bear she’d been given for her birthday clutched to her chest. Aerlia was holding her ducky close in her room. They had tried time and time again to encourage her to find a new stuffed animal as her ducky was falling apart but she just wouldn’t do it. It had been the first stuffed animal that Agron had given to her and as such she just wouldn’t let it go. Carefully laying Austen within his crib he slipped across the hall to the room that he shared with Nasir.

The man was curled up on the bed with a book, trying to find a position that was comfortable and despite his valiant attempts at such, it wasn’t working very well.

“Whatcha reading?” Agron was always amazed by how different Nasir’s taste in books was. One day he could be reading a romance and the next it was something that had to do with action or war. “

“Jane Eyre.”

“Never heard of her. What has she written?” Agron didn’t turn around to look at Nasir but had he, the man’s eyebrows had reached the middle of his forehead and he was not at all sure what rock Agron had been living under.

“No, that’s the name of the book Agron.” He sighed before turning back to the book in front of him.

“Oh.” Pulling a quilt from the closet, Agron moved from the bed to sit beside Nasir before draping it over both of their laps.

Nasir’s finger tips ran over it. It was the quilt that Eva had fixed so many years ago, the one that his mother had originally made. Setting the book aside his eyes turned to Agron, there was something that he was trying to get across without speaking the words. “What is it Agron?”

“Nothing.” He held his arms out to Nasir waiting for him to curl against him once more. “I just thought maybe it would help you feel better.”

Leaning against Agron, Nasir fidgeted trying to get comfortable. It was tough but he finally found a comfortable position within his arms. “Right now I feel pretty good. In the morning though it will hurt something awful.” The more that he moved the better it felt, though it still hurt, it didn’t hurt as bad as it did when he did nothing.

“We’ll see how you’re feeling Monday but maybe taking a couple of days off wouldn’t be such a bad idea.” Agron was worried about Nasir, he hoped that it didn’t show but he was sure that it probably did.

“We’ll worry about that when it gets here. Hey Aggie?” Nasir tried to turn his head to look up at his gentle giant but he just couldn’t get his head to turn in the direction that he needed it to.

“What’s up?”

“I promised Eva that I’d help her with the flower bed tomorrow. You think you can do it?” He hated to let the young girl down and knew that he could handle Aerlia and Lea while they did so.

“Of course I can. Lea and Aery can play in the front yard while we do so and if you’d like to, you can sit on the porch and help from a distance.” He was trying to figure out how to make it work in his mind and he could see it working.

“We’ll see Agron, I am capable of keeping them inside. I might be slow moving but that doesn’t mean that I’m dieing.” He couldn’t help the teasing words. He knew that Agron was worried, but he wished that he wouldn’t be. This had happened many times before, perhaps on a smaller scale but it had still happened all the same.

“Hush and take a pain killer. It’s getting late, you should be sleeping anyways.” Perhaps he was taking the fact that Nasir should be resting a little more seriously then he should be but Agron wanted so badly to see him alright again. The sooner he followed the doctor’s orders, the sooner he would start feeling better.

“Yes Dr. Agron.” Nasir sighed moving away from the man’s chest in order to find the pill bottle he had dropped on the night stand when he’d crawled into bed. “Say, it’s really nice of you to make house calls but I have this other problem.”

“Oh yea? What’s that?” Agron quirked an eyebrow as he watched the man trying to figure out what he was talking about. The sound of Nasir’s voice told him that he was in a playful mood but it didn’t tell him much beyond that.

“See, I’ve had this thing for a guy and he makes my heart feel like it’s going to jump out of my chest. I don’t think he knows just how wonderful he is though, I’ve tried to tell him time and time again but in the last fifteen years that I’ve known him, he’s denied it stating that if I could really see his past, I wouldn’t think that anymore. Yet I think that no matter what his past is, no matter if he were to have slept with another guy and lied to me about it, I think that I’d still be in love with him. Is that a bad thing you think?” Nasir’s words took Agron by surprise. He knew that Agron loved him, there was no question about that but even so, he had never heard him speak such as this about him.

“You see, I have a very similar situation. There is a man who sends my heart a flutter. Whom the mere sight of waking up to him each morning, still takes my breath away even after as long as I have been with him. In fact there are mornings that I would gladly consider jumping him while he yet sleeps.” It was rare to hear Agron speak so openly about matters that involved his emotions and yet he was doing so now. “Yet he swears he is not as beautiful as I see him to be.”

“I love you Agron, and you are more than welcome to jump me any time you would like to. Just wake me up first hey?” There had been a couple of times that such a thing had happened while he was yet attempting to wake up and while he had found that there was no better way to wake up, it was still an occurrence that had been a little awkward for them both.

“I love you too Nasir.” Agron curled up on the bed reaching over to switch off the bedside lamp. “And I will keep that in mind. Perhaps I will once you’re feeling better. Something tells me right now no matter which position you’re in, there will be no comfort for you.”

***

“Daddy has a boo boo?” Lea’s bottom lip slipped out in a pout as she stood on the porch step in front of Nasir, tiny little hands slipping into on of Nasir’s. Agron had just scolded her for trying to climb on Nasir and she was trying to rationalize what was going on in her own little way.

“Yes sweetie but I’ll be fine.” Reaching a hand out, Nasir reached out running a hand through her hair trying to figure out how to explain to the little girl what was happening.

“Will daddy kiss it and make it better?” The little girl’s innocent often times amazed them both, she saw the world in a way that many wouldn’t. She didn’t see the horrors of the world, instead she saw only the good in it. More importantly though, she didn’t see anything wrong with having two daddies, in fact  to her it only meant that she got more loving. Yet that was all she had ever known, she had not known a mother as many others had.

“He might baby girl.” In truth though, the little girl was a beauty. She held Nasir’s dark complexion and the dark locks that he had always adored. She was always fussing about how she wanted her hair to look like daddy’s, it had taken Agron forever to figure out how to put hair up but he had learned. Of course they were only simple styles, but he was making progress. “Go play Lea.”

Aerlia was settled in the grass, watching her little sister trying to figure out what she had done to chase her off. Right now all she wanted was someone to play with and instead her sister was ignoring her. Yet Nasir’s words brought a smile to her lips as she watched him. It was encouraging to hear him say them, it meant that Lea would return to playing with her. After all it wasn’t very often that they were allowed to play in the front yard, and even when they did it was normally under Agron’s ever watchful eye.

“Okay.” Lea huffed before she went to play with Aerlia once more. They had been drawing on the driveway with sidewalk chalk and were once again beginning to return to that. Their creative minds never seemed to stop.

Nasir’s eyes turned to Eva and Agron for a moment though, the young girl was fighting with a rose bush, Agron laughing as she whined about being poked and then grabbed hold of it once more only to cry out again. This was the man that he had given his life to, and yet when they had exchanged vows, he had never thought life could be like this. Eva was ever vigilant in what she did, strong willed and hard headed just as Agron was. Yet he was having trouble believing that within the next few years she would be graduating. “So what’s this I hear about you having a date for a dance?” He had not actually heard the words from the girl’s mouth but he was interested to hear her take on the subject.

“W-where did you hear that from?” Eva seemed surprised and disappointed that he had heard about it already. She had wanted to tell them, but it was obvious her friends couldn’t keep their lips closed long enough for her to get to do so.


	28. Chapter 28

“Chadara called beaming.” Nasir offered a grin as his eyes fell upon Eva. The woman had been a good friend of his for many years now, and while they had not grown together, their children seemed to travel in the same circles. Her husband, Donar, and Agron were close. Eva had to have figured that they would have heard by now, and yet the look upon her face told him that she was upset.

Agron’s eyes turned to look at Eva, the back of his hand brushing away the sweat from his forehead.

Nasir swallowed hard. ‘Fuck.’, it was all that he could come up with right now. Watching the muscles ripple beneath the simple t-shirt that Agron was wearing had made it a long morning. He’d love to pin the man against something and hump like bunnies and yet he could hardly move right now. Fuck the Gods, this wasn’t fair.

“But, I wanted to tell you.” The look on Eva’s face told of her disappointment and he was almost sure that she would pout.

“We are sorry. I called your Aunts though and they’ve promised a shopping trip to help you to pick out a dress tomorrow since your dad and I will be of no help to you.” Agron sat back on his heels. He couldn’t imagine what Nasir was thinking, yet he couldn’t believe that the girl was going out on a date. Of course Kai and Amelia would be there and that made him feel better, yet she was growing up so fast.

            “Which ones?” She was always confused when he referred to her Aunts. There were so many of them that she had taken in as her Aunts that it was a situation that the reference confused her.

“Well I called Saxa and Kat but they were going to call Naevia since Amelia is going as well and I can only imagine that Sibyl will go as well.” Agron offered a shrug laughing as Aerlia attacked him from behind. Allowing himself to fall back against the grass, he pulled the girl within his arms, before his attentions returned to Eva. “But why has it taken so long for you to tell us?” It was something that had confused them both when Chadara had called; they had both figured they would hear of it from the girl who would be beaming if she was truly excited.

“I-I didn’t know how to tell you.” She pursed her lips as her eyes drifted from Agron to Nasir. “I was afraid that you might be upset, that you wouldn’t allow me to go.” She knew that it was a silly fear, after all, it was not as if Travis were a complete stranger to them, in fact it was the exact opposite and even Eva knew that.

“How about hey dad, I got asked to go to the dance?” Nasir offered a smile before his eyes drifted over the flower bed that she and Agron had been working at for most of the morning. “So, you feel like you’re done?” The flower bed had been her baby now for a couple of years and thought it was tough work each year, she never gave up. It had been Agron’s mother’s but for many years it hadn’t gotten the love that it needed since they were both busy and perhaps because it hurt too much to do so, but Eva had eventually turned to giving it the love that it needed.

“Yea, I think so.” Eva nodded, her eyes falling on Lea and Aerlia who were now happily attacking Agron, though it was certainly playful.

“Alright then, who’s interested in lunch?” Nasir pushed himself from the porch step that he was sitting on, cringing as he did so. It was better than it had been the night before but it was still tender, yet he refused to spend his days in bed doing nothing.

“I am.” Eva pushed herself from the ground, her eyes drifting over herself for a minute. “Well once I get cleaned up that is.” She could only see a shower in her future due to the fact that she was covered in dirt.

“Go get a shower then.” Nasir shook his head, the difference between her and Agron was amazing. She looked as if she had been rolling in the dirt and while he was covered in grass stains that would be a pain to get out, he looked alright otherwise. “If you want a shower too Aggie, go for it. I’ll make lunch for the girls and then we can eat when you’re both done.”

“Only if you’re sure.” In truth Agron was still worried about Nasir; he knew that he was in pain even though he was trying so hard not to let it show.

“I’ll be fine.” His eyes turned to Aerlia and Lea. “How’s grilled cheese and tomato soup sound?” He knew the answer but he would await their answer anyways.

Both little girls turned their attentions from Agron, instead focusing it upon Nasir instead. “Yay!” Lea squealed scrambling up from the grass where she had been laying, Aerlia following after her as well.

Nasir simply laughed holding the front door open for them. He had figured that they would be excited but perhaps not that excited. Once they were both inside, Nasir slipped in after them, heading for the kitchen. Agron had headed for one bathroom and Eva the other, and though Nasir would do almost anything to follow after the other man right now, he pushed thought from mind and started work on lunch.

***

“Oh Eva.” Kat’s voice caught as she spoke, eyes running over the girl who now stood before them in a strapless purple gown. The bodice held tightly to her tiny frame but at around her hips, it puffed out, with sequined accents. “It’s beautiful.”

When it came to picking out a dress, Agron and Nasir had insisted, whatever she wanted no matter what it would cost. The girl deserved happiness and if this would help her to achieve it they would happily oblige. 


	29. Chapter 29

“It really is very pretty.” Sibyl offered a smile as she tipped the girl’s chin up to look at herself in the mirror. She could tell that the girl wasn’t so sure about the fuss that was being made over her.

“What do you think of it Eva?” Naevia asked. She was patiently waiting on Amelia who was insistent upon a dress that would take at least three people to take off. A fact that would comfort Crixius she was sure considering that he didn’t like that the girl was going out with a boy, even if it was someone that he knew.

“It’s nice.” The girl’s voice was quiet which made the three of them exchange a look of concern. Nice? That was never a word that Eva used when talking about clothing, especially not something that she had picked out herself.

“Did you like the last one better?” Kat was trying to figure out what exactly had Eva They had both been very pretty though, this one was certainly the prettier of the two.

“No.” The girl was still peering at her reflection as if she was contemplating something, though it was tough to tell what that something was.

“Is this about what happened?” Kat could only imagine. Something like that would live with the young girl the rest of her life, no matter if she wanted it to or not. Though that was something that Kat understood, she had lived with the fact that she had once had an eating disorder every day of her life. It wasn’t easy not to relapse, that was a fact that she knew well and yet they would both survive.

The girl hesitated before she nodded. “I-I guess I’ve never really seen myself as pretty since.” The words were meek, but Eva spoke them, it was a start.  
            “You agreed to go though, obviously you saw yourself of some worth.” Sibyl was confused. Was it that the girl wished not to go? Or was it simply that she felt as though she didn’t deserve to be seen as pretty?

“Its hard to explain.” Eva allowed a sigh to slip between her lips.

“Go put on the last dress and we’ll see what you think.” Kat gently set a hand upon the girl’s shoulder. She knew well what it was like to look at the person in the mirror and not see what everyone else did.

***

“Aunt Kat?” Eva’s lips pursed as she sat across from the woman. After picking out a dress they had stopped on the way home to get lunch. Kat had insisted upon it, stating that it wasn’t often enough that they got to see each other.

“Yea?” There wasn’t anything that Eva had ever asked that she wouldn’t answer for her, perhaps she had changed the details a little to make them appropriate for her but she would never not answer her.

“I-I’ve been thinking.” Eva didn’t know how to ask what she was about to ask. She knew that it was personal for her aunt but it was something that she was curious about. “And I was wondering, how did you over come everything in your life?”

“You mean the eating disorder?” Kat didn’t mind that the girl asked. She had become comfortable with the topic over the years and she didn’t mind talking about it. She had been a bulimic for many years and she had paid the price for it, and would do anything she could to keep another from suffering then she would more than happily do so.

“Yea.” Eva sheepishly answered, her eyes turning to look at the table before her.

“It’s alright Eva.” Kat reached across the table setting her hand against one of Eva’s. She couldn’t help laughing though; it seemed rather odd to talk about such a thing while they were sitting at a table eating cheese burgers. “I was about your age when it started. I’d love to say it was easy to stop but it wasn’t. I came really close to losing your uncle before I stopped and realized that I had a problem that really needed treating.”

She remembered well one of her boughts of hospitalization. She had awoken to find Duro beside the bed and despite swearing that he’d loved her before, all he’d said to her was that he couldn’t do it anymore. He’d actually left her that day; it was something that had broken her heart. Yet, it had also been a reality check for her. She wanted to be done with it, but more than anything she had found happiness in being with Duro and losing him would have killed her.

It had taken a long time to convince him that she was serious about getting help but eventually he had taken her back. She had never blamed him though; she could always understand why he had decided to leave.

“But I mean…” Eva was trying to decide what she wanted to say. “Did you ever still think that you weren’t all of the things that everyone said you were?”

“For awhile, yea, all the time. Eventually though I started to see that they were right, that I really was beautiful and after awhile it got much easier.” She gave the girl’s hand a gentle squeeze. “Eva, look at me.” She was finally seeing what this was all about.

Her chin turned up to look at her Aunt. She wasn’t sure what she was about to say but she was sure that it was going to be a pep talk.

“You are beautiful. Not just physically but spiritually, you are very beautiful. I know that you’ve been through hell, I know that what you went through is hard to deal with for you but you are so much more than you see.” Kat wished more than anything that there was a way to make the girl see what she really was. To see herself the way that everyone else saw her but there was nothing that she could think of that would help.

“I don’t see it, all I see when I look in the mirror is the girl who was foolish enough to let herself get raped.” Biting at her lip Eva allowed a sigh to slip between them. She knew that they were words that Kat most likely wouldn’t like but she needed to speak them.

“Well then maybe it’s time for a change. What do you say we have a girls day this weekend? The dance is Saturday right?”

Eva nodded trying to decide what her Aunt had up her sleeve.

“Alright then I’ll come get you Saturday morning, we’ll hit the spa. Get your nails done; maybe see about a hair cut, which is completely up to you. The simple changes are the ones that make the biggest difference though. Remember though Eva, I’m always here if you need to talk.” Kat was serious when she spoke hoping that Eva understood. She couldn’t promise her that she wouldn’t tell Agron or Nasir what she confided in her but she could tell her that she would always listen to her no matter what it was that was bothering her.

“It sounds nice.” In truth she didn’t mind spending time with her Aunt and she found comfort in the idea that maybe she was right; maybe it was time for a change.

“Alright, I’ll talk to your dads about it and we’ll see what they have to say.” Kat patted her hand gently offering a smile as she dropped money on the table to cover the bill. “You ready? I’m sure that they’re both pacing at home waiting to see what you got.” She could only imagine that Agron was pacing across the living room waiting to see the dress. He wanted so badly to make sure that this was special for her, that she saw happiness in her life.

Nasir wasn’t as vocal about his emotions but if you looked closely enough, you could tell that his face told the tale of what he was feeling. He wanted his oldest to be alright, to be happy and more than anything he didn’t want her to be upset with the things that had happened to her over the years.

This was a big thing for all of them. It wasn’t simply the first time that Eva was going out like any normal girl but it was further proof that she really was going to be alright on her own. While she would always be there daughter, with each day that passed she needed them a little less and that was hard for them to deal with.

“I swear Dad’s been floating around the past few days.” She was sure that the statement was probably hard to understand for Kat. She had meant Nasir but often times she referred to them both as Dad, which would probably confuse anyone who was not aware of the situation.

“He’s happy for you. I think he’s even happier that it’s Chadara’s son that you’ve taken interest in. It’s someone that he can trust not to be a complete ass and break your heart.” Perhaps Kat was a little more up front with the girl than most people would be but it was true. Neither Agron nor Nasir seemed upset that she was considering seeing the boy, while they were having a tough time dealing with her growing up this was a simple adjustment.

***

“I hear that you picked a dress out hey?” Derrick stood in the door way leaned against the door frame, his arms crossing across his chest. While Lea, Aerlia and Austen lay asleep downstairs, they had the upstairs to themselves and were free to move about as long as they were quiet.

“Yea.” Eva’s eyes turned up from the book that she was reading at the sound of her brother’s voice. She had figured that she would hear from him eventually but until now he hadn’t shown up.

“So, you’re really interested in this kid huh?” His eyes fell upon Eva, flitting away before the girl could catch him looking. He wouldn’t be seen as weak, he wouldn’t allow for it to happen.

Eva was curious about his behaviors. They weren’t like Derrick would normally be. He was hiding something and she couldn’t understand what it was. “Is something wrong Derrick?”

“Huh? Oh, no. I was just thinking that’s all.” Offering a shrug, Derrick offered a weak smile at her. “You sound excited about this weekend.”

“And you don’t. What’s really wrong Derrick?” Eva hated to see her brother upset and yet without knowing what was wrong, Eva couldn’t change what ever it was.

“Nothing. I said nothing was wrong.” Derrick’s stubborn side was beginning to show now, while he had grown so much since he was a little boy, that part had never changed. Although they had all learned that when he turned stubborn, he was most often trying to hide something.

“Would you just tell me already?” Eva crossed her arms watching the boy. He was one of her best friends, nothing would ever change that and yet, he was still trying to hide something from her and she couldn’t understand why he would do such a thing.

“I said it was nothing didn’t I Eva?”

“And I also know that you’re lying.” Eva didn’t ask why he was lying, she didn’t care. She was more concerned about her brother and what was really bothering him.

“I-I…” Derrick sighed trying to decide how to tell his older sister what had been floating through his mind all of this time. “I hate the thought of you seeing someone. Perhaps it is jealousy, but that is not how I see it. I do not wish to lose the friendship that I have since gained with you. That he will soon take my place and you will no longer have a need for me.”

Eva’s eyes flew open, jaw dropping as she listened. “Such a thing will never happen Derrick and you know it. There will always be a place in my life for you.”


	30. Chapter 30

“That’s what you say now but that will change too.” Derrick’s eyes drifting from her back to the floor.

“Derrick. You are always going to be one of my best friends. No one is going to replace you. Besides it’s a date, not handing over the rest of my life.” Perhaps Eva had interests in the boy but he would never replace her brother. Not in a million years.

“Don’t even bother attempting to pretend like you are not interested in him.” While the girl may have worked hard at trying to hide it from Agron and Nasir, Eva had never tried to hide it from Derrick. Perhaps because she knew that her secret was safe with her brother.

With rosy cheeks, Eva’s eyes turned to the floor in front of her. She didn’t know that her brother had been listening to her conversations with her friends. Of course she wouldn’t have changed her choice to speak of it. “Well…”

“Yea, that’s what I thought.” Derrick grinned. “It wouldn’t kill you to enjoy yourself and Travis seems like a good enough person.” While he had experienced him only a few times, Derrick could see what Eva saw in him. “I will make sure to kick his ass if he hurts you Eva.”

“Good. I wouldn’t have it any other way.” Oddly enough she didn’t mind the over protective nature of her younger brother.

***

“Suppers on the table.” Agron called up the stairs. It was about the third time he’d called and yet Eva had been gushing over her excitement over the next day. “If you don’t come down, you can starve.”

Of course he wasn’t serious but yet Agron was beginning to grown irritated with her attitude today.

“I said that I was coming.” Eva sighed, crossing her arms.

“I called three times. Plus you can be assured that you didn’t answer because your father asked as well.”

“Chill out.”

Agron found himself taking a deep breath in order to not lose his cool. Over the years he had taught himself to deal with his temper.

“Tonight is not the night for this Eva.” Nasir’s voice was flat, lacking its normal peaceful tone. They had both been up the past couple nights off and on trying to keep poor little Austen comfortable. He had come down with a cold and an ear infection and while he was on antibiotics, he was still a miserable little guy. While they took turns, it still made for a long night and an even longer day the next day. Of course this meant that both of their patience ran very low very quickly.

The girl didn’t say anything more, she merely slid into her seat at the table. Agron sighed as Austen began to cry again. “I’ve got him.” He mumbled slipping down the hallway to the little boy’s room. He had hoped that he would sleep a little while longer but he was hungry he imagined and that would explain why he was crying once more. Though his appetite was far from that which it normally was, he simply only ate more often which was something that he could imagine was a good thing.

Otherwise he was fussy and all he really wanted was to be cuddled and loved at. He wouldn’t lay in his own bed, he cried and screeched until either Agron or Nasir picked him up, and then he would try and burry himself in their chest.  There was something about them that made him more comfortable, and he could tell if even Eva had him. That was not good enough for him; it had to be one of his daddies.

***

“Little man finally asleep again?” Nasir cracked an eye to look at Agron once more trying to decide what time it really was.

“Yea.” Agron crawled within the bed, body collapsing against it. Exhaustion was beginning to take its’ toll upon him and he wished that there was more that he could do and yet, he had reached the point where his body would allow him to do no more.

“Sleep Agron. I will take care of him.” Nasir cuddled against the man a smile forming as he pressed gentle kisses across his forehead, down his cheek, and then down his neck.  He wanted him to know that he was loved, valued and appreciated. All the things that Nasir would want to be reminded of in a situation like this as well. Yet he knew that Agron was exhausted, he wanted him to sleep, to feel better about himself.

“Alright.” Agron sighed closing his eyes and no sooner did his head hit the pillow then he was asleep. He had finally succumbed to slumbers’ inevitable snares and Nasir hoped that he would stay that way for a while at least.

While he was tired as well, Agron had insisted upon taking the brunt of his care, at least until he had grown exhausted and now he had no choice but to give in to the exhaustion. Of course it was Agron’s way of dealing with this but it bothered Nasir all the same. He knew that it worried him and there were so many other ways that they could have dealt with this.

“God have I got to get you straightened out one of these days.” Nasir’s voice was gentle as he spoke. He knew that Agron couldn’t hear him and that was for the best right now he supposed. He wouldn’t deal with Agron arguing with him right now. He would look after both him and the little boy if he had to, but that would be much harder if the other man was consistently arguing.

“People would think you’re nuts talking to yourself like that.” The young girl’s voice brought Nasir from his thoughts. Eyes focusing in the dark.

“What are you doing up?” He moved from Agron’s shoulder trying his hardest to decide what was going on with her.

“I-I came to see if there was anything I could do.” She knew that they were both having issues with exhaustion and sleep but she didn’t know how to help.

“Yea, you can go and sleep. You have a big day later today and you should be well rested.” While things had been tough with her lately because of her attitude but this gesture made him feel a lot better about it. The girl was obviously still in there despite her teenage ways.

“But, I want to help.” Eva’s eyes fell upon him. In truth she wanted nothing more than to help out the men who had made sure that she was alright all of these years.

“Another night Eva. This is for you. Now go to sleep. You have an early morning tomorrow, your Aunt is supposed to be here at nine. “ Nasir would make this sacrifice if he needed to for her.

***

“Oh Eva…..” Agron couldn’t find the words to describe what he was thinking. This was something that he had never figured that he would experience many years ago and now he was standing here looking at a beautiful young girl who was getting ready to head out.

“Come on Eva, we’re going to be late for dinner.” Kai was waiting impatiently at the door, Amelia at her side. Kai had been tapping her foot for nearly five minutes now. The young girl’s patience was running out and it showed.

            “Alright, one more thing before you go.” Nasir pursed his lips moving into the room. Slipping behind the girl, he carefully draped a pearl necklace against her skin. “Have fun tonight.” The words were but a whisper as he slipped the clasp into place.

            Eva’s eyes drifted over him trying to find out what exactly it meant. She could only imagine that it had something to do with his mother and yet she couldn’t bring herself to upset him by asking. She offered a knowing nod before picking up her dress coat off the couch and pulling it on. “I-I will be back tonight.”

In truth above all else, she was nervous. She didn’t know what to expect, this was the first time that she had even considered having a relation after what had happened but she was excited just the same.

            “Alright, we’ll probably still be up.” Agron’s eyes drifted to Nasir. In one look they had exchanged all the words they needed to. Their little girl was almost grown up, and it was time to start dealing with that.

            It wasn’t until the girls had slipped out the door that Nasir allowed a sigh to slip between his lips. “Where did our little girl go?”

            “She grew up.” Agron sighed shaking his head as he looked at him. “I know, it’s tough but we have so much to be proud of.”

            “I only hope she has fun.” Nasir contentedly settled into his arms, leaning against him, eyes closing. “And that we raised her well enough.”

***

“You cut your hair.” Travis’ green eyes drifted over Eva as he eyed her, a smile forming upon his lips as he did. It was the first moment they had gotten alone all night and he had been quietly been admiring her. “It shows your beautiful face off.” Reaching up he brushed away the short curls from her cheeks.

“Yea, I needed to get rid of some memories that it held.” She didn’t want to scare him off, leaning against the rail as she watched him. She paused to think about what he had just said. “Y-you think it looks nice?”

“Yea, it’s beautiful. Not that you haven’t always been beautiful, I just, I guess I was afraid to say it.” She wasn’t sure what he could have possibly been afraid of but the only way to find out was to listen when he spoke. “I mean, mom told me what happened.” He bit at his lip not wanting to remind her. “I-I….guess I didn’t want to push too fast.” He had never felt as awkward as he did now, here standing on the front porch with her.

She couldn’t help the gasp that slipped between her lips. He knew? He knew what happened to her? How was it possible that he knew this and that he hadn’t left yet? “Y-you know?”

“Yea. There’s been a lot of rumors about it floating around.” He sighed, lips pursing as he looked at the floor boards for a minute. “But, I don’t believe them, in honesty, all I’ve ever seen is a beautiful girl who’s sweet and funny and did I mention beautiful?”

Now Eva didn’t know what to think at all. She wanted to be the girl that he has spoken about but she wasn’t sure what it was that she should say now. “I-I….” She stammered as she looked at him.

“Eva, I really like you.”

“I like you too.” Her tongue ran over her teeth as she looked at him. She hadn’t intended to tell him but while they were both being honest, now seemed like a good time.

“Well that’s good. That’ll make this a little less strange.” Reaching up he lifted her chin before he leaned down pressing a kiss to her lips. “Know that I’m always here Eva.”

The poor thing was taken aback by his actions. She wanted to say something, anything at this point but she didn’t know what to say.

“Good night Eva.” Carefully squeezing her within his arms Travis offered a smile. “I will see you Monday?”

“That seems so far away.” Eva quirked a smile as she looked up at him. “Maybe I can come up with something to do tomorrow.” In truth, she was happy lost within his arms. Her gentle giant, built like his father despite his mothers’ blonde hair and emerald eyes that she could get lost in.


	31. Chapter 31

“I wish, moms insisting that we go and see her parents tomorrow.” He let a sigh slip between his lips. He didn’t like it anymore than she did. “But you have my number now so that doesn’t mean we can’t still talk.”

“I guess.” Eva was fighting a shiver. It was cool out and her jacket was thin.

“Go inside Eva.” Travis released her from his arms. “I’d hate to find out that such an angel was sick because of my selfish wishes to keep her within my arms.”

Pressing herself up on her toes she pressed a kiss to his lips before she moved away from him. “Good Night Travis.”

“Good Night beautiful.”

Pushing open the door, Eva slipped inside reluctantly shutting the door she leaned against it, eyes falling shut. She was praying her hardest that she wasn’t going to wake up and find that this was a dream.

“Have a good time?” Agron’s voice caused her eyes to fly open in shock. She hadn’t realized that he was there. Perhaps it had to do with the darkness in the room but she had assumed that they had already gone to bed.

“Y-yea.” Eva managed to stammer debating what she should tell Agron. Did he need to know all of the details or was it not necessary? Normally she wouldn’t consider keeping anything from him but she didn’t know how he would act. How he would respond to hearing this information. “It was nice.”

“Sorry, I didn’t mean to spook you.” He had been headed to bed, making sure that everything was taken care of before he did. “And how was Travis?” He had known Donar for awhile and he could only imagine that if the boy took after him at all, she had had her hands full.

The blush upon her cheeks told him more than she ever would. Though he couldn’t tell if it was because she was embarrassed by something that had happened with the boy or if it was simply that she was interested in the boy, there was something below the surface. “He’s sweet.” She licked her lips as she looked at him. “I-I think there could be something more to it then just tonight.”

“Good. Now go and take a shower, if you don’t you’ll be finding glitter in the weirdest places for months.” He offered a smile as he looked at her. “I wont bother telling you why I know that.” In fact it wasn’t that he wouldn’t bother telling her, it was that he certainly wasn’t going to tell her about the stripper that he had woken up to in his bed one night while still living with Gannicus. He could only imagine that Gannicus had brought her home and she was drunk enough that she had no idea whose bed she had crawled into, especially since he knew that he hadn’t invited her back.

Though explaining to Nasir where the glitter that he couldn’t seem to get rid of came from had been an experience that he would much rather not live again. After all, it wasn’t like he could simply tell him he’d had a stripper in his bed.

“T-that’s all?” Eva was confused. She had expected to be pestered about details of the night and other such things. Yet there was no such thing, something that confused her.

“Is there more that you wish to talk about?” Agron had figured that the girl wouldn’t want to talk about it and yet she seemed so surprised that he didn’t press for details.

“I-I…”Eva paused taking her shoes off dropping them to the floor. “Just don’t be surprised to see more of Travis I guess.” The words were but a whisper as she slipped past him starting up the stairs.

“Good. I’m glad that you are happy. Good Night.” He managed not to smirk until he was down the hall. It was obvious that the boy had adapted one thing from his father. He had managed to acquire his charming nature, and Eva had fallen for it.

Crawling into bed, Agron wrapped his arm around Nasir pressing his lips against the man’s neck to tell him that he had joined him in the bed.

“Mmmm.” Nasir mumbled settling back against the other man. “Eva’s home?” He didn’t open his eyes, he could only imagine that if Agron had come to bed that the young girl was home safe. There was little about Agron that was predictable but his nature when it came to the kids was. He never came to bed if any of them weren’t home and he didn’t know where they were.

“Yea, and I think maybe she’s been bitten by a case of teenage love.” He was glad for this fact really, after everything that the girl had been through it was good to hear that she was happy.

“Good. Just mention to Donar that if he likes his oldest son, the boy wont lay a hand on her that she doesn’t like.” Nasir pulled the blankets up over himself a yawn slipping between his lips.

“Don’t worry, already been there. He laughed at me and asked me if I was sure I wasn’t supposed to be calling Gannicus instead.” Agron didn’t mind the man’s sense of humor. In fact there were many times that he appreciated it, and this was one of them. “He’s a good kid though, I think she’s safe with him.”

“Chadara was beyond excited that he had asked her.” The two had been friends for many years. In fact it had been Chadara who had finally convinced him to start seeing Agron. That he would be happier with the man then he was on his own. For one of his kids to have fallen for one of hers, even if it was only for a short period of time, he would be glad to know that they were happy together.

“Eva was practically glowing when she got home.” Agron laughed softly, he couldn’t remember the last time that he had seen the girl so happy. “Good Night sweet Nasir.” He held the man close to him and for once he felt like things were finally the way that they should be. It would be a night of sleep that did not include worry for once and that was something he could certainly be glad for.

“Good Night baby.” Nasir mumbled as he settled in against the bed and Agron once more. 

***

Pushing herself from the bed, Eva yawned, the sunlight pouring in through the window. She was glad for a Sunday morning where she could sleep in and yet, she felt like she could spring from the bed. Picking her phone up off the night stand she began flipping through the emails and messages that had come in through the night.

Of course there was one from Amelia and one from Kai trying to figure out what had happened after she had left them, useless emails that she couldn’t care less about, but there was one that almost made her cry. All the message said was ‘Hope you have a great day beautiful, you deserve it.’ Beautiful. It was such a simple word and yet to her it meant so much more. For the first time the night before, she had looked in the mirror and seen something that she wasn’t used to seeing. The girl looking back at her in her reflection truly was beautiful. While she did believe that, hearing him say it had only enforced it for her.

At least it confirmed her greatest desire, she hadn’t dreamed the night before, it had really happened. Well at least that was a start she supposed. She knew that all she had to do was make it through the day and in the morning she would get to see him, it was best to find something to do and just make it through the day.

“Oh, you are awake.” Nasir offered a smile as his eyes fell upon the girl. “I was just going to leave you a note. Your dad and I are headed out. We’ve got Austen, Lea and Aerlia are having a play date at your Uncle’s. The numbers are downstairs if you need anything.”

“Alright.” Eva nearly beamed in return. “Is Derrick still around?” While she couldn’t handle being left with most of her younger siblings, she didn’t mind Derrick and she could handle the others one at a time but not all at once.

“Yea, your dad was harassing him downstairs while I was down there. So how was last night?” Nasir had already heard from Chadara, she had been her normal self but it wasn’t hard to tell that she was also very happy. “You’re welcome to come with us if you’d like.” He knew that Eva normally preferred staying home and yet he felt bad leaving her, she was happy, giddy and yet she couldn’t see the one person who had helped to finally unlock that for her.

“Where are you going?” She knew that she wasn’t even dressed yet but it might be worth it still if they were willing to wait for her to get ready.

“Well we’ve got a little shopping to do and then I’m not sure what’s going to happen. We’ll just play it by ear and see what we want to do. I know you don’t always enjoy spending time with your dear old dads but it’s up to you.” He had noticed that she hadn’t answered his question about how the night before had been but he didn’t repeat it. She would tell him when she was ready.

“Do you mind if I shower first?” While she had showered the night before when she went to bed, she still felt kind of gross this morning. Even after washing her hair it was as if her hair was stiff from the hair spray that had been put in it.

“No, go for it. We aren’t on a time frame or anything. Your brothers already decided that he wants to stay home. Maybe I’ll tell him to call Brice and see if he they can enjoy a day together.” He knew that the two of them could get into trouble but they also wouldn’t get into trouble. Brice had quickly learned that as much of a push over as his father was, he would still lay down a punishment if necessary.

“Alright. I wont be long.” She slipped past him headed for the bathroom.

Nasir simply shook his head, this wasn’t the same girl who had been snapping back at Agron only a couple of days earlier. There was no possible way that it could happen, and yet here it was his daughter. Moving downstairs he laughed listening to Agron mocking Derrick. “Eva’s in the shower, she wants to come with us I guess. So with that said Derrick if you want to call Brice and see if he wants to come keep you company then that’s cool with me.”

“Sounds good to me too.” Agron offered a shrug. Sure he might tease the young boy but it was his way of showing his love for him too. “I’m sure Saxa’d drop him off.” Normally he would say Kai but he was sure that the girl was still in bed after the night before. In truth, he was kind of surprised that Eva was out of bed already.

“I’ll call.” Derrick grabbed the phone heading for the kitchen. He didn’t know what his friend was up to but he was surprised to hear that his sister had actually decided to leave.

Nasir’s eyes fell on Agron raising his eyebrows. “Did Eva tell you what happened last night?” He was surprised that she hadn’t shared details. It wasn’t like her and yet, in a way he could understand.

“Not really. She said she had a good time, that he was sweet. Why?” The question worried him. He couldn’t understand why Nasir would be asking.

“Oh, I just wondered. She seems awfully happy today that’s all.” 


	32. Chapter 32

***

            The next few months passed peacefully. Eva was happy with Travis, and both Agron and Nasir were rather happy with him. She was a princess in his eyes and that was how she deserved to be treated and he made it apparent that it was so even when she didn’t always appreciate it.

            “What’s the matter Eva?” Nasir’s brow furrowed as his eyes fell upon Eva. The girl had just come in the front door, tears slipping down her cheeks.

            “I don’t want to talk about  it.” Eva sniffled heading up the stairs.

            Derrick stood watching her move. He knew well what had happened but wouldn’t divulge until she was upstairs. Once the girl had disappeared Derrick sighed turning to look at the dumbfounded Nasir. “She feels like it’s her fault that Travis was suspended.”

            “What happened?” Nasir hadn’t heard from Chadara yet which meant that evidently she wasn’t aware of this development yet.

“Well, from what she said Tiberius called her a slut and Travis didn’t take it as well as he could have. She’s been a wreck the whole way home.”

“Oh, the little prick.” Nasir wasn’t fond of Tiberius by any stretch of the imagination. It didn’t surprise him that the boy was in the middle of this.  Yet for anyone to use what had happened to Eva against her seemed like a vile and filthy act, and he could only imagine that Travis had put him back where he belonged probably with his fist. The boy was quarterback for the football team and this wasn’t the first time he and Tiberius had butted heads. “I didn’t just say that by the way.” Normally Nasir was the one who was so careful spoken around the kids but when it came to situations like this, often times his filter was broken. However as many times as he had scolded Agron for his speech, the man would love to make fun of him for this.

            “Eva seems to be having a harder time dealing with what happened to Travis then what was said about her.” He had tried relentlessly to make her feel better and yet nothing he had said had made any difference and that was the hardest part for him.

            “Just give her some space. She’s going to be upset, but if I know Eva she’s going to attempt to apologize and hopefully with any luck he’ll be able to talk her out of feeling like she does right now. Meanwhile I’m going to see if I can’t get a hold of Chadara and smooth the waters.” He couldn’t see the woman being upset over this but it was still something that he should do and he knew that. 

            All Derrick could do was nod as he started for the stairs. “I’m going to go get started on my homework.”

            “Let me know if you need help.” Nasir loved what he did but in truth, he missed having the kids at home. He knew that it was best for them but it was still a tough choice and it had been reasons such as this that he had feared allowing them to go back.

            Moving into the kitchen he picked up the phone pressing it to his ear, he waited for an answer.

            “Hello?” Chadara’s ever cheerful voice greeted him on the other end of the phone.

            “Hey Chadara I was…” His words were cut off.

            “Oh Nasir, I was just about to call you. Is Eva alright?” She had heard what had happened and while there had been scolding of her son, she couldn’t help the soar of pride she felt. He had defended someone that he cared for and that was what life was all about.

            “She’s a little emotional but otherwise she’s doing alright. I’m sure that she will be calling Travis soon. She feels like she’s caused this from what it sounds like.” Nasir could only imagine what this would mean. “I’m so sorry this happened Chadara.”

            “Don’t be Nasir. We understand, I was just worried about how Eva was. I cant believe that the little fucker used rape as an excuse to call her a slut. Better yet to say that she wanted it. Hell, he’s friends with the prick that did this to her. “ It was obvious that Chadara had heard more than he had and hearing this pissed him off.

            “There has to be a way to put him back in his place.” Nasir was infuriated. This kid needed to be taught a lesson in the worst way.

            “Oh from what I hear Trav knocked him into next week. Donar’s theory is that he took lessons from Agron.” The woman knew it wasn’t true of course. She had more than once seen her husband take on someone for one reason or another. “She is welcome here whenever she wishes to visit. I’m sure I couldn’t keep Travis from her even if I wanted to. It reminds me of how you were when you first met Agron.”

            “Yea, we aren’t going here Chadara. I love you and all but I hate listening to you drabble on about how we were. I’m going to go check on Eva, I just wanted to call and make sure that everything was alright there. Knowing Agron though, he’ll be calling to congratulate him eventually.” HE knew the man and his distaste for the Crassus family in general, hearing that the boy had stood up for Eva to one would only make him happier.

            “Donar already called him. From what I hear Agron had some choice words but he was incredibly happy to hear that Trav stood up to him.” The woman was excited herself, there was only so much that she would put up with but this was not to that point yet.

            “Alright I’ll talk to you later Chadara.”

            “Good bye Nasir. Give her a hug for us, and let her know that we’re always here.”

            “I will, and Travis is welcome here as well. “ It wasn’t as if there weren’t kids in and out all the time as it was and Eva had really taken to the boy and he saw no reason to take that from her. Hanging up the phone he moved towards the steps, moving up them. It was quiet upstairs which told him that at least she had stopped crying.

            Placing a gentle knock on the door he waited for her to answer and allow him to come in.

            “Come in.” The words were mumbled and muffled by the door but she had spoken them none the less.

            Opening the door he slipped inside. “Hey there.” This was awkward and he knew that it couldn’t be any easier for her either. “Do you want to talk about it?” He knew that the girl was just as uncomfortable with this as he was. She had never been this into another boy before and yet this one was so very different. “I understand if you don’t want to Eva but I did talk to Chadara and Travis isn’t in trouble with her or Donar. In fact she wanted me to give you this.” Reaching out, he pulled the girl within his arms, hugging her close to his chest.

            “That fucking bastard.” It was obvious that Agron had worn off on her and normally Nasir would scold her for things such as this but he understood given the circumstances. “He was trying to get to me and all he did was piss Travis off instead. All he is, is a spoiled rotten rich kid. He deserves whatever he gets.”

            “I cannot say that I blame you for that thought.” Normally he wouldn’t let one of the kids hear him say that but there was something about this kid that really bothered him. “Have you talked to Travis since?” He figured that hearing from him would make her feel a little better about it, even though he had promised that the boy wasn’t in trouble.

            “No, I was going to call in a little bit.” Her voice was a quiet whisper as she looked up at him. “I-I was afraid of how he might feel about it I guess.” She had figured that he would probably have ended up in trouble and that bothered her. It felt like it was her fault and she didn’t want to upset him anymore then he probably already was at this point.

            “Then why don’t you do that.” He pressed a kiss to her forehead lightly. “See if he’d like to join us for supper tomorrow. Your sisters are having a sleep over at Duro’s.” While he knew that Eva loved them both she was often overwhelmed having them around. “It’ll give everyone time to get to know each other better.”

            Austen was finally feeling better after his recent bought with a stomach bug which meant he was returning to his happy go lucky nature. Which meant that he would be good most of the night as well. The little boy was now ten months old and he was growing, he was already beginning to try to walk about which had Agron holding his breath fearing that he’d fall and hurt himself.

            “A-are you sure?” Nasir hadn’t invited him to join them before and these words came as a surprise to her. While she wouldn’t argue with him, she would ask him to be sure that it was his wish.

            “Positive Eva. I will leave you alone to call him.” Pushing himself from the bed he stopped to look at Eva. “You’re sure you’re ok?” IT wasn’t that he thought that she was lying to him but he wanted to be sure. Something like this could not be easy for her, that much he knew but she seemed to be dealing rather well and that worried him that she wasn’t dealing and instead was hiding behind a façade of calm.

            “Yea, I’m fine.” She looked up at him, pausing with the phone in her hand ready to dial it. His words had made her stop to think about it for a minute.. “Honest. He’s a rich prick and while the words hurt, it’s not true. I didn’t ask to be treated like I was but that’s what happened and I have no choice but to deal with what happened.”

            Nasir only nodded, he was proud of her. There was nothing he could say that she hadn’t already said at this point. She was right; she was brighter than anyone would give her credit for which amazed him, not because he didn’t believe it but because he had never imagined this could happen.

***

“I thought you said Travis was here?” Agron looked confused as he stood before Nasir and Eva looking confused. The boy was no where to be found and that confused him. Of course it was easy to confuse Agron when he was attempting to balance the books anyways.

“He’s out throwing the football with Derrick.”

“And Eva isn’t following like a lost puppy dog?” Agron offered a wolfish grin as he reached out setting a hand on the girl’s shoulder. “Relax, we aren’t going to embarrass you I swear.”

Her eyes turned up as her brother and Travis came in through the backdoor. “Hey Beautiful, did you know that there’s a horse in the backyard?”

“That’s not a horse, that’s Duke.” Eva laughed. “He’s a great dane, mastiff and pit bull from what the vet has to say.” The dog was her big baby and she wouldn’t take anyone picking at him. “Layla’s wandering around somewhere too but she’s not nearly as big. She’ll probably let you know that she’s not impressed with you being here but she’s never bit anyone, she’ll adjust eventually.” Hell the dog hadn’t really like Gannicus or Crixius for awhile but she had learned to get along with them. 


	33. Chapter 33

“Don’t let her fool you, she does have a horse and it’s almost as spoiled as she is.” Agron smirked.

Eva’s cheeks blushed. “I-I’m not spoiled.” Her voice was meek as she spoke. He had promised that they wouldn’t embarrass her and yet that was exactly what he had done.

“Nah, you’re not spoiled beautiful. You’re just treated as you should be.” Gentle fingers brushed at her hair. “Look at it this way, I’ll teach you to roller blade and then you can teach me to ride.” He hadn’t missed the reddened hue of her cheeks and wanted to make her feel comfortable once more.

Nasir’s eyes turned up to look at Agron, eyebrows raising. HE wasn’t trying to degrade the boy’s opinion, he was simply surprised. It wasn’t hard to see Chadara’s influences in the boy’s life.

“Don’t you remember the last time you went out rollerblading?” Agron could only shake his head.

It hadn’t been the most fun experience for the young girl. The last time she’d ended up with a sprained ankle and a severely jammed wrist. At least nothing had broken he supposed.

            “I’ll keep her safe sir.” Travis wouldn’t consider letting anything happen to her.

            “There is absolutely no reason to call either of us sir.” Nasir shook his head. “I understand that it’s a respect thing and all but it’s not necessary here.”

            “I’ve known your dad a lot of years.” Agron grinned as he looked at the boy. “He instilled an awful lot of things in you that you wont need in this house. We don’t expect much.”

            “Of course s-..” Travis found himself stopping short. This was a new feeling. He had heard many stories about the pair growing up and he had never anticipated falling for their daughter and yet he had fallen and fallen hard.

            A sigh escaped Eva’s lips as she moved to the back door. “Duke!” She called trying not to yell at him. She knew that he didn’t mean any harm but he was chewing on the porch boards trying to keep himself busy. “Come on inside.”

            “You mean the horse comes inside?” Travis looked at her seeming dumbfounded.

            “Yea. He sleeps with me at night.” Scratching the dog behind the ear as he walked by she laughed. “That’s a good boy, go get your bone.”

            “Sorry kid, he’s pretty protective of her bed. You’re not getting laid.” Agron’s eyebrows rose a smirk playing at his lips. He had been trying to fight the words but it appeared he was not successful.

            Eva’s jaw bounced against the floor as her eyes flew open. He hadn’t just said that.

            Travis allowed a laugh to slip between his lips. “She’s too good for that anyways.”

            “Good answer.” Nasir laughed as he looked at the boy. “You’ll get used to Agron. He’s not normally this bad but sometimes every now and then he ends up in a mood like this.”

            “Nah, I’m used to living with dad.” The boy shrugged. “I assure you he’s not worse.” Reaching out he pressed Eva’s chin up to look at him. “Easy beautiful, I’ve heard much worse.”

            “Come on Duke.” Eva mumbled starting for the living room.

            “Eva Marie.” Agron’s words stopped her in her tracks. She knew better than to not respond when he used her middle name. “I’m giving you a hard time.”

            Reaching a hand out Travis grabbed hold of her arm. She wouldn’t pull away he knew and instead she relaxed against his touch. “Easy beautiful, it’s going to be alright.”

            Eva simply nodded offering a glare in Agron’s direction. She was still pissed off at him but it was a right that she had gained at this point. He hadn’t had a right to say what he had and that bothered her, a point that she was going to make sure he understood later.

            “So how’s your mom doing?” Nasir decided it was best to break the awkward silence.

            “She’s doing pretty good. You know how mom is.” Travis offered a smirk. “Oh, she sent these over for you too.” Moving to take an envelope of pictures from the pocket of his coat he held them out to Nasir. “She said you’d know what they were. “

            “Must be the ones that she said she found while she was going through a box of pictures. Thanks.” He could only imagine what Chadara had managed to get pictures of while they were growing up and he found it safer to go through them later with Agron. After all the woman had sworn that some of them would make him blush and he could only imagine that meant some of them were interesting.

            “She said there’s probably more but that was what she had found so far. She’s been trying to put together some of the scrap books and stuff since she’s off work for awhile but that’s not working. Iain’s been keeping her pretty busy lately. He’s just starting to get into things and pull things down from where they belong and such.” Much like Eva, Travis knew what it was like to be the oldest with siblings that were much younger. “And with dad at work, it’s just been tough.”

            Nasir knew the feeling well. He could remember trying to make sure that Lea and Aerlia were alright while Agron wasn’t home. “I’ll call her later and see if there’s anything that we can do to help out.” He could imagine that the woman would insist that she was fine and she didn’t need the help but Nasir wouldn’t take that as an answer.

            “Alright Eva, so you still need to run out to the barn and take care of Ariel right?” Agron leaned against the counter. He was prepared to take her out if he needed to.

            “I’ll take her.” Travis quirked a grin as he looked at the man. “I still don’t believe that there’s a horse other than that thing that she let in from outside.”

            “I’ll grab my coat.” Eva murmured heading for the stairs knowing she’d dropped it on her bed when she’d gotten home earlier. It was only a few minutes later that she returned with the coat. “Ready when you are.”

            “We’ll be back shortly then. That is if it is alright with you of course.” He hadn’t even thought to pose the question before now.

            “That’s fine.” Agron set a hand on the boy’s shoulder lightly patting it. “If I don’t like something you’ll know it, don’t worry.”

            “Right.” Travis offered a nod, taking hold of Eva’s hand before he led her to the front door.

            Once they had disappeared out it, Nasir’s eyes turned to look at Agron. “Sooooo?” He was curious what Agron thought of the boy and he knew that without asking, chances were Agron wouldn’t answer him.

            “So I think that he reminds me a lot of both Chadara and Donar. It’s obvious that he enjoys Eva’s company which isn’t a bad thing. In fact it’s a very good thing.  She does calm very easily when he’s around, however he ever calls me sir again and I might be forced to hit the kid.”

            Nasir uttered a laugh as he shook his head. He knew that Agron was only joking but sometimes he wondered what went on in the man’s mind. There were others like now though where he need not wonder, it was an open book for anyone who wished to read it. “You’re a handful you know that?”

            “Mmmm, you once told me that more than a handful was a waste. Now that wasn’t what you were saying last night but, I’m just saying.” Agron knew that the words would ease the tension that they had both been feeling. He had stepped out of line and he did owe Eva, which he did know. However, right now it was just the two of them and he wanted Nasir to know that he really was alright with the situation.

***

            “Yes Eva, I had a really nice time tonight.” Travis laughed softly as he leaned against the railing of the porch. He knew that he should be getting home soon and yet the vision of beauty sitting on the railing before him, kept him from leaving.

            “You’re not just saying that because you want to make me happy are you?” Reaching out she allowed her fingers to play with the blonde locks that adorned his head.

            “No. I swear to you, they aren’t that bad.” He would agree that perhaps Agron was crass, and spoke what he truly wished for you to hear and it was normally what he was thinking and without a filter. Nasir on the other hand was the loving one, or at least the one that allowed it to show. Yet, they both loved their kids and that was easy to see.

            Eva had spoken of her younger sisters frequently and he was surprised to not have had an encounter with them tonight but she had also said that they were off at a sleep over. It was however easy to see how close she was to Derrick and in fact he kind of admired their relationship, it was rare to see such a thing.

            “They’re different…” Eva laughed. “I promise though, they’ll grow on you.” She had heard several times how her fathers were from many of their classmates and yet here he stood insisting they weren’t that bad, she was almost positive that he was lying. “So we’re going out for coffee in the morning and then rollerblading hey?”  

            “Right.” Travis leaned forward pressing a kiss to her lips. “You going to introduce me to the rest of your family?” He had met Saxa and Sibyl while they were at the barn and while that had been an experience that he wasn’t sure that he understood completely, but he would do such things for Eva.

            “Mmmm not sure.” She paused a minute hoping off the railing before she walked to the front door leaning in. “Hey dad?”

            “Hmmmm?” Nasir’s response was simple as he leaned over the back of the couch.

            “Who’s working tomorrow? Uncle Duro or Uncle Gannicus?”

            “Ummmm they both might actually be, if not probably Gannicus.” He couldn’t remember off the top of his head but if he had to guess that was what it would be. “Let me guess you’re going to get coffee in the morning?” He smirked knowing the answer well enough. Normally if they couldn’t find the girl she could be found at the shop, often doing homework after school but both Duro and Gannicus kept her well supplied and she wasn’t getting into trouble.

            “Then yes, you can meet the rest of my family.” She wasn’t sure that she could put him through meeting Duro just yet, if she had to then she would, otherwise she would save it for another time. His nature was much like Agron’s, only worse often times and she wasn’t sure that Travis was ready for that just yet.

            “Alright beautiful, I should get going.” Pressing a light kiss to her lips, he cupped her cheek. “See you in the morning?”

            “I’ll see you then.”  Biting at her lip, Eva couldn’t help wondering what tomorrow would bring. She was excited and nervous all the same and for her that was the worst part, she didn’t know how to feel.

            Pushing himself from the rail, Travis offered a nod. “I’ll see you tomorrow beautiful.”

“Night.” The word slipped through her lips without thinking about it. She waited until he was gone before she moved into the house, slipping up the stairs. One day she would get used to this feeling. Perhaps it wouldn’t be today, maybe not even tomorrow but, she would get used to it no matter what. That much she was sure of.

***

            “Morning baby.” Nasir’s voice was hoarse and raspy as he pressed a kiss to Agron’s lips. He had heard Eva leave a little while before and Derrick would sleep well into the morning if they allowed him to, which left them free to do as they pleased.


	34. Chapter 34

“What time is it?” Agron mumbled as he moved his face from the pillow it was buried in.

            “Eight-thirty. Eva left about half an hour ago which means that we can do whatever we want to.” Nasir’s fingers ran down his side, pausing to clutch at his hip bone, lips playing at Agron’s ear.

            “Really now.” Pulling the tiny man into his arms Agron held tightly onto him, pressing against him. “There’s so much I want to do to you.”

            “No, No.” Nasir smirked playfully pushing Agron against the bed. “You got to be in control last time. My turn this time. You just lay here and enjoy.”

            “We both know that I hate that.” Capturing Nasir’s lips within his own, Agron’s finer tips played at the waist band of Nasir’s boxers.

            “I know baby, but I promise you will find something to do in the end. Just enjoy it no matter what. That’s all I want from you.” That was all that Nasir ever wanted. IT wasn’t in the sensual kisses or even the stroking that Nasir sought his release but in Agron’s reaction, in his enjoyment and in simply knowing that the man had found happiness.

            “Enough talk.” Agron’s back arched, hips rolling against him at the touch of his hands. “Fuck.”

            “Patience baby.” Nasir grinned, his fingers playing happily at Agron’s skin. IT was amazing how close he could get him by simply kissing and touching at his skin.

            “It’s been too long since I have been this near to you so intimately. Patience is not something that I will find this morning.” Agron could see that Nasir was teasing, he knew that but that was torture as well.

            “Come on Agron, all you have to do is finish removing your clothes and then I can do whatever you want me to do.” Nasir moved from straddling the man to allow him the opportunity.

            He never needed to ask a second time, as he moved Agron was already shedding the offending material before his hand reached back out for Nasir. “Now who is wearing too much clothing?”

            The words caused Nasir to laugh, before he shed his boxers and crawled back into Agron’s arms. “Better?”

            “Much.” Though it was better, Agron was still jittery, he wanted Nasir, wanted him more than anyone could imagine. The one thing that always remained the same in their relationship was the fact that no matter what happened, they always needed one another.

            “Good.” Nasir leaned his head pressing his lips against Agron’s, his own hunger showing as he allowed his tongue to explore Agron’s mouth. Without warning he pressed forward, allowing himself to push inside of Agron.

            Agron’s eyes flew open, a moan muffled by Nasir’s lips. His finger tips pulling at Nasir’s hips, he wanted to make it clear that he wished for him to continue. He was shocked but he wouldn’t allow him to stop because he felt as though Agron didn’t want it.

            “Fuck…” Nasir’s chin dropped against Agron’s chest, his hips steadily rolling as a hand took Agron’s cock into his palm, hand beginning to move.

            Agron couldn’t form words even if he had wanted to. Instead he shifted, hips thrusting at Nasir’s hand.

***

“Woulda been nice to get warm water this morning.” Derrick grumbled pulling a box of cereal from the cupboard.

Both Agron and Nasir had to choke back laughter. Perhaps what had been intended as a quick shower had ended up much longer and more sexual then it had been meant.

“Sorry kiddo.” Agron finally managed. “Besides if you had been up earlier you could have had the first shower of the day.”

“Right.” Derrick simply rolled his eyes, he wouldn’t argue but they knew that it was likely that he would never be up that early. “Where’s Eva?”

“Her and Travis went out this morning. He was going to teach her how to rollerblade. Gannicus’ called earlier and said they had been in.” Nasir wasn’t surprised, Eva adored the man as if he was family and in that respect, he had figured she would want to introduce him to Travis. “Guess Saxa was kind of rough on her last night about getting her priorities straight.”

“Like Saxa is really one to talk.” Agron muttered.

“What about Eva’s priorities aren’t straight?” Derrick looked confused now as the spoon stopped half way to his mouth. He had always thought that his sister had a great grip on her priorities and was well aware of what should be take care of, yet their aunt was questioning that now and he didn’t understand why she would do so.

“She thinks that Eva’s paying too much attention to Travis and not enough attention to Ariel and her school work.” Agron shook his head. “I really think that it should be our call and it bothers me that she would even make such a statement. I mean yea, she does spend a lot of time with Travis but she’s happy, who am I to tell her that she cant spend time with him?”

“Exactly.” Nasir just shook his head. “I’m annoyed with it too.  I do think that we need to talk to Eva about it though, make her see that this isn’t what we think and that she’s alright the way that she is.” The last thing that he wanted was for her to assume that they were upset with her and change because they didn’t want her to, just because someone else wanted her to.

“Well that’s a start at least.” Everyone was on the same page and was a good thing since they had a tried a few times before and it had not been a good experience for any of them.

“Did she say anything before she left this morning?” Normally Derrick didn’t sound this beaten down as he spoke of his sister but something wasn’t right, though Nasir couldn’t exactly put his finger on what it was. 


	35. Chapter 35

“No, she didn’t even stick her head in to say she was leaving.” Nasir knew that wasn’t unusual. She often left for school without seeing if they were awake or not. It wasn’t unusual and he wasn’t sad to know she was growing up and yet he did worry about her.

“Hmm…” Derrick mumbled, his attentions returning to the bowl in front of him.

“Why, what’s up?” Agron got the impression that there was a reason that Derrick had asked. The boys reaction confused him, normally he was happy to see her happy as well.

“Oh, it’s nothing I guess, we were just going to see a movie. Guess he was more important then I was.” Pushing himself from the table, Derrick set the bowl in the sink before quietly disappearing.

“Don’t look at me like that, I don’t know.” Nasir mumbled to Agron. Picking up the phone he dialed it waiting for the girl to answer. This type of behavior wasn’t like her at all.

“Hello?” Somehow Eva managed the word between giggles.

“Hey, are you still going to the movies with your brother?” Nasir thought he knew the answer and yet nothing would have surprised him.

“Yea, I promised I’d go with him. Why would I change that opinion now?” The girl’s laughter had finally subsided and she no longer sounded as happy.

“Eva? Are you ok?” There was something in her voice that bothered him. He couldn’t figure out what it was though.

“Yea. Tiberius just wandered in.”

“Eva, where are you?”

“The shop. Uncle Ganni called and asked that I stop on my way home to pick up a couple things.” Her words were distant, they made sense but it was obvious she was distracted. “I’ll be home soon.”

“Alright. Don’t let him get to you, he’s not worth it.” HE knew he should probably be talking to Travis in that aspect but he also knew that Gannicus could handle two teenage boys and he knew that he was also aware of what happened between the two and he was sure that Gannicus would keep the girl safe.

***

“What the fuck happened?” Agron’s eyes flew open as they fell upon Aerlia.

“She’s fine Agron. Well, besides the cut up knee, cheek and well her hand even.” Duro shook his head. He knew that Agron was worried but he knew that Agron was worried but he was being a little over dramatic about it. “She was out playing and she fell down. She was a little fussy but she’s fine now.”

Carefully Agron scooped the girl up in his arms. She was beginning to get to be too big for this and yet it was still his first reaction to it.

“I’m fine Papa.” The young girl hugged at his neck. “Aunt Kat took care of it.” The words put him a little more at ease; he knew that unlike his brother, she wouldn’t tell him what he wanted to hear.

“Good.” Agron offered a kiss to her cheek before returning her to the floor to go and play.

Duro’s eyes rolled, sometimes Agron could be such a worrier, of course he couldn’t necessarily blame him, if it had been one of his kids, he’d have been upset too.  He knew that the girl was prone to easily getting sick and that was probably part of Agron’s concern, the fear that it might get infected and she would end up sick again. “I told you she was fine Agron. A little clumsy sometimes like you but otherwise she’s okay. How’s Eva? Ganni said the moron was in today?” He hated to call a child names but like his brother, he held no love for the Crassus family. He wouldn’t let her end up the same way that Isabelle had, not if he had a say in it anyways.

“She’s doing alright. She said that he didn’t really say anything to them, at this point I really think it’s a fear thing. He wants her to feel like she’s indebted to him or something. It’s stupid but he’s used to getting everything that he wants and Eva under his control is exactly what he’s looking for. Travis keeps a pretty close eye on her though.”

“He seems like a good kid. Well from what I hear anyways, I seem to be the only one who hasn’t actually met him already.” Duro couldn’t help wondering why that was. Even Kat had met the boy already.

“Well something tells me that he’ll be around for awhile so there will be plenty of time for that.” Agron wasn’t aware that Eva hadn’t introduced him to Duro yet. That would soon change, he would be sure of that.  “As for him being a good kid, he had his moments, but with the way that he treats Eva, they are moments that can be dealt with.”

“As long as she’s happy.” Duro offered a smile, his eyes falling on Duke. “I see he’s gotten bigger.” Though Duro and the dog hadn’t always gotten along, they were on better terms than they had once been on.

“Yea he sleeps with Eva most nights. I’m still trying to figure out how they both fit in bed together.” Agron shook his head. The dog stood tall enough that he could eat off the counter or set his head upon it. Of course they had broken him of that habit, as well as growling at Duro but he could if he chose to.

“Well she’s a tiny enough girl that makes sense. Kat’s been keeping a close eye on her, I think she was worried that maybe there was an underlying condition for it.” He had heard Kat say it time and time again. She was worried that the girl possibly had an eating disorder but Eva had never showed signs of such which brought comfort to the woman.


	36. Chapter 36

“I think she’s fine.” Agron offered a weak smile as he looked at him. “She’s healthy as a horse but I do agree with you, it’s time that Tiberius learns his lesson. How’s the clinic coming for Kat?”

“Well, she and Crixius have put a lot of work into it. She was headed out to meet the grant committee when I left. Nae kidnapped the girls for the day. She said with Amelia and Alton at her mom’s for the week she’s been lost, so she took them.” Duro sighed leaning on the counter for a minute. “I’ll be honest; I don’t know what to do with myself. I don’t have anything to do, it’s so weird.”

Duro was so used to having one of the girls pulling at his pant leg or having to keep after Faith because she wasn’t listening again. Though she was a sweet little thing and a daddy’s girl, she had recently been diagnosed with ADHD and that showed a lot of the time.

“Well. You’re welcome to kidnap Derrick if you want to or Eva and I are supposed to go horseback riding this afternoon, you’re welcome to join us if you want.” Agron knew well what his brother meant; there were many nights where without the kids around he didn’t know what to do

“Right, me a horse, we both know that will go well.” Duro shook his head as he thought about it. “Thanks but no thanks. I’d much rather kidnap Derrick; you’re sure that you’re cool with it?”

“Yup, fine by me and I’m sure that Nasir won’t mind either. Will you baby?” Agron offered a grin as the tiny man wandered into the kitchen.

“I never agree to anything that the two of you plot that I don’t know about, let’s remember the last time that I did that.” Nasir offered a smirk as he eyed the brothers. It wasn’t that he didn’t trust them, he did, however they also had a tendency of getting him into situation where he agreed and later wondered what the hell they had gotten him into.

“I said you wouldn’t mind if he kidnapped Derrick.”

“Oh, no, feel free. Normally he helps with the girls and Austen but I think we’re pretty good for now. Aery’s curled up on her bed asleep already, and Lea looks like she could fall asleep too. I’m not sure what you did to them but you’ve got to teach me because I could certainly use the secret.” Nasir offered a grin. He was teasing. Normally both girls were pretty good, though Lea was in the middle of a stubborn phase where she insisted that she knew best or that she didn’t have to listen if she didn’t want to.

“They played most of the night the past couple of nights. I tried to get them all to go to sleep but I wasn’t as successful as I had hoped for.” Duro allowed a sigh to slip between his lips. “We knew that Faith was going to have some kind of issues with as long as she was on oxygen but I’m at my wits end with her. I’ve never been so thankful for Kat deciding that we needed a nanny and hiring Kore on.”

“You need a break too Duro.” Nasir offered a weak smile as he looked upon the younger brother. “Besides if I know anything about Kore, it’s that she is more than happy to work with kids.”

He knew well enough that the woman had walked away from her social work job because she couldn’t deal with the agony that she faced daily. Of course she made much less working for Kat and Duro, she loved what she was doing and she was one of the few people that Faith listened to. It also took the stress of trying to keep the house together off of Kat, since the other woman did that as well.

“I know, and so does Kat. Poor thing. She’s been trying to hold down her practice and get this clinic started. I swear there are nights where she doesn’t sleep and instead she just lays there beside me.” Pursing his lips, Duro shook his head. “I really think that she’s taken too much on but she wont listen to me. Ah well, one of these days I will get her to understand I guess.”

“You are such a worrier little brother.” Agron shook his head. “Kat knows what she is capable of. I’m sure once she gets the technical part done she’ll be more likely to start taking time off again.” While he wasn’t so sure about that, he hoped that it would make his brother feel better. After all, the woman had a heart of gold and she wanted to help those who were affected by something that she had once been afflicted by.

Crixius had agreed to help her to take this project on, and he had done a lot of the work as well and they had finally almost finished getting things set up and they both were mentally and physically exhausted and it showed.

***

“So, how was your time with Eva?” Nasir’s eyes turned up from where he was laying on the couch, sweet little Austen settled in on his chest as he laid there.

“It was nice. We got some much needed quality time with one another, and it helped to make Saxa feel better about this whole situation with her not spending enough time with Ariel.” Agron rolled his eyes before he sat on the floor beside the couch. “Which you know how I feel about that and all.”

“Right, she’s growing older but she’ll be fine. I really do think that she will ever fall less in love with that horse. Sibyl is looking for someone to pick up a horse though.” Agron sighed. “He’s pretty high strung but Eva’s in love. I told Sibyl I’d call later and we’d talk about it after I had talked to you.”


	37. Chapter 37

“You’re a little late for that.” Nasir allowed a laugh to slip between his lips. “Sibyl called to tell me about him. She’s decided that she wants to give him to Eva.”

“We cant…”

Nasir help up a hand to stop him. “I know, I already told her the same thing. She insisted but I just cant do it.”

“Right, she wasn’t listening when I told her the same thing. She isn’t asking very much for him especially looking at his bloodlines.” Agron was beginning to see that he wasn’t going to have to convince Nasir as much as he had though he would need to.

“Is it something that Eva wants though?” Nasir’s hands fell upon the young child upon his chest’s back. The little boy had been asleep for awhile but he had been afraid to move him in case he should wake again, he would be tough to put him to sleep again.

 “She sounded excited. I think that her big thing with Ariel is that she’s learned just about everything that she can. She’s reached a level that means that in essence she probably needs a new horse and Sibyl matched her right with Ariel.” Agron simply shook his head. HE knew that the girl would love the horse and to him that was what was most important for her.

“Alright, I’m in on the idea.” Nasir knew the other man was right. There was probably nothing that would make her happier.

***

“Easy boy.” Eva’s hand ran over the stallion’s neck. Spitfire had been a handful but she supposed maybe that was why he was called Diablo’s Spitfire.

“Tell me you aren’t asking me to ride that, that thing.” Travis’ eyes were wide as he watched her.

Eva could only laugh as she tightened the stirrups. “I like you too much for that. He’d have you on the ground in less than three seconds with your riding expertise. You can take Ariel out.”

“Oh, good.” Travis offered a grin as he watched her with the stallion. Though a few minutes before Spitfire had been stomping and tossing his head in annoyance as Eva had ignored him when she walked by, he now stood calmly. “He’s already spoiled enough that I don’t really think he’d let anyone else ride him anyways.”

“He’s such a good boy.” Eva rubbed at his neck, though the first couple of days had been tough for them both, they had finally clicked and were beginning to work as a pair that would eventually become inseparable. Though Saxa had been disapproving of how Eva had been behaving lately with the horses, she had seen some light in Eva bringing Travis with her to go riding. Yet Eva had come to a point where she didn’t care what the woman thought, she was falling further and further in love with Travis and that was all that mattered to her, and she knew it was certainly all that mattered to her fathers as well. “Would you hold him for a minute while I get Ariel out?” Her eyes turned to look up at him, she knew that the stallion worried him but she was sure that he wouldn’t hurt him.

Despite his wild and fiery temperament, the stallion truly was a lover and he was a sweetheart underneath it all. Perhaps that was why Sibyl had decided that Eva needed him in her life, she would never know but she did appreciate the vote of confidence.

“Yea, yea I guess.” It was kind of amusing for Eva to watch him squirm. At football practice he could easily stand still and allow someone to run into him, but when it came to horses he was afraid of what they might do to him. “You promise he wont try and kill me?” There was a playful smile upon his lips as he asked the question but it was still a justified question. Spitfire was easily twice his size and at times a bit flighty, a dangerous combination when it came to someone inexperienced.

“You really aren’t comfortable with this are you?” Eva stopped a minute to watch him. It was finally sinking in for her.

“I trust you Eva.” Travis smiled. It was true, horses weren’t his favorite creatures. As a young child he had been tossed off of one during an afternoon out with his mother. In the end, he had ended up with a couple of bruised ribs and bumps and bruises, but above all else, he held a fear of the majestic creatures. Why hadn’t he told Eva this before now? Instead he had agreed to go with her, maybe he hoped that it would make him feel better or maybe he thought that he would just have simply gotten over it and would be able to do this with her but either way, it was obvious that the fear was still there with him. “But, I’ll be honest, horses aren’t my favorite animals. You love them though, so I thought that maybe I could just make it through for you.”

Eva paused for a minute turning her head as she looked at him. “Why are you afraid of them?” She couldn’t imagine being afraid of such wonderful animals. They were like her best friends, and even Kai and Amelia couldn’t replace that, it was a feeling that she wished that he could feel as well and understand it.

“When I was younger, mom took me out for the afternoon; she thought that horse back riding would be a fun bonding experience.” He sighed shaking his head as his eyes moved over the stallion that was standing in front of him. “Anyways, about half way into it, the horse spooked over something in front of it and reared. I ended up with severely bruised ribs and of course the bruises and scrapes to match. I haven’t been on a horse since.”


	38. Chapter 38

“So why did you agree to come?” Eva stood looking at him, confusion in her voice as she spoke.

“Because it’s something that you love doing. I love you Eva, I want you to know that and I’d do anything that you asked me to.” Reaching out he set a hand against Eva’s cheek.

The girl stood shocked as she looked at him, he had never said these words to her before, it took a minute for the words to sink in. For a moment, she thought that she must be dreaming, that he hadn’t really spoken the words and yet she had heard them. “I-I love you too but we don’t have to do this if you’re not ok with it.”

“No, no, it’s not that.” Reaching a cautious hand out, he patted at Spitfire’s neck. “I’m just not sure that riding is a great idea but, eventually maybe we will get there.”

Eva nodded softly, and idea forming as she looked at Spitfire. “We’ll go riding later boy, I promise.” She whispered rubbing at his nose. “Right now though, how about we go for a walk, huh?”

As if answering her, the stallion let out a snort, head bobbing as he seemingly agreed with her.

“He’s getting to be a social creature again isn’t he?” Sibyl’s voice spooked Eva from her conversation with the stallion.

“I’m glad that we can give him a good home.” Eva offered a smile as she began to pull the saddle off, followed by the saddle pad. “Alright boy, you ready?” Her eyes fell to Travis, a silent question, was he sure he really wanted to do this?”

In answer he offered a nod, holding a hand out to her as he waited. For her he would try, she had been through hell, tormented and tortured in her nights sleep by memories of the past, and this was perhaps the first step towards that.

Taking hold of his hand, she led Spitfire forward, the horse happily following after her, attempting to pause to munch at the grass as they reached outside.

“Are you not feeding him enough?” Travis grinned watching the stallion, “Or is he just a pig?”

“He’s well fed, but his last owner didn’t treat him very well, I have a feeling that maybe it was possible that she was keeping food from him. He was a little skinny when I first got him but after a couple of weeks, he’s doing much better. However, he still feels that he has to stop and eat every blade of grass that he passes. Come on boy.” Eva gently pulled at the reigns in her hand, to get him moving again.

***

“So how did it go?” Agron’s eyes turned up from the book in his lap, the young ones were taking a nap and Derrick was out with friends for the afternoon. However, he knew that after school, Eva and Travis had been headed out to the stable again. Every night for the past two weeks, the girl had been headed out for the stable and they had been spending an awful lot of time there lately and Eva had confided in him about Travis’ fears and he had told her to do as she thought was best.

“Better, Spitfire’s hanging in there; he’s not impressed with not being ridden all the time but I think he’s starting to adjust better to it then he was before. And Trav’s doing alright.” Eva dropped into the chair across from him. “I think that after a few more weeks, we might get him into the saddle yet.”

“And how’s your Aunt?” Agron knew that Saxa was having a hard time with the girl growing up, there had been several issues between them and yet Eva stood strong, something that Agron was proud of.

“Quiet, she hasn’t said much since the last time that you told her off.” Eva shook her head, she hated having a relationship like this with the woman but there seemed to be no alternative way about this right now. “I hate this; I guess I should talk to her.”

“It’s up to you.” Agron wouldn’t tell her what to do, he would be there to step in when Saxa over stepped but otherwise, he wouldn’t control her. That was her decision to make.

“Maybe, maybe I’ll call her and see if she’ll talk about it.” She thought it was unlikely that the woman would tell her what was going on but she could only hope. Pushing herself from the chair she grabbed the phone dialing it as she headed up the stairs for her room.

Agron smiled to himself, there was nothing that could make her feel better, he knew that but maybe if they talked, they would learn to see things from each other’s side.

Upstairs Eva was making small talk with Saxa trying to decide how exactly she wanted to start this conversation. “No, no, I didn’t forget anything; actually I wanted to talk to you.”

“What is on mind young one?” It was unusual for Eva to call her to talk instead of simply discussing it with Agron or Nasir.

“I-I…I know that you are upset that I’ve been seeing Travis so much, but even bringing him to the stable didn’t help. I don’t understand what I can do to make you happy for me, to make you see what he really means to me.” Eva hadn’t planned on this, but the words just began to spew out of her mouth. She had kept them locked inside for far too long.

“I do not dislike Eva. I wish you happy but there are other things in life too. It is not like he is the one you will marry.” The words cut at Eva more than Saxa had intended them to.

“All I’ve ever tried to do is make you proud, and for the first time in my life I decided to do something for myself and now you’re upset about that too.” She was bitter but to her it seemed justifiably so, after all, the woman she had taken in as her Aunt had basically told her that her dreams meant nothing. 


	39. Chapter 39

“I will always be proud of you Eva, you know that but you are not looking reasonably.” Saxa sighed. The young girl had once stood so strong on her own and now she was wrapped around the boy’s finger. 

“Listen Aunt Saxa, I called to try and work things out, but it is obvious that wont happen so, I’m going to let you go before we say something that we both regret.” The young girl took a long deep breath, it was much harder then simply mouthing back to the woman but she also knew that it was the right thing to do. Simply hanging up the phone before Saxa could say anymore, she let her phone fall to the bed curling up into a ball as the woman’s words rang in her ears, tears slipping down her cheeks.

“Eva?” Agron’s voice was soft as he leaned against the door frame, eyes falling over the girl. He was concerned of what Saxa could have possibly said to make her act like this but whatever it was, it obviously had been painful for her. “Would you like to talk about it?”

For a long moment the only sound that came from the girl was the sound of the sobs that wracked her chest. “I’ve done everything that I could to make her happy for me and all she can say is that he’s not the one that I will marry? That’s not her place to decide. Maybe I will, maybe I wont, but how can she say such a thing?”

Agron moved to sit on the edge of the bed holding his arms out to the young girl. She didn’t think twice before she curled within him, allowing him to wrap her within strong arms. “Shhhh, you are still young, you have plenty of time ahead of you to worry about what is going to happen next. Right now, the most important thing that you need to do is have fun. That is the best advice that I can ever give you, just have fun. Don’t worry what she thinks; it will work out the way that it’s meant to. If you truly love him, then don’t let anyone else tell you that you shouldn’t be with him.”

Eva’s sobs had turned into sniffles now as she listened to him. “I-I do love him.” She whispered, though it took a lot for her to say, she had never actually been physically comfortable saying them. Even as she had spoken them earlier, she had trouble giving voice to the idea. “I just wish that she could see that.”

“You know what I see when I look at him?” Agron offered a smile, finger tips rubbing at her back as he spoke.

“What’s that?”

“I see someone who treats my daughter as if she is a princess, who makes her eyes light up every time he shows up on the door step and you know what else I see?  I see someone that I wouldn’t be sad to see you fall marry if you so choose to. Don’t let her get you down Eva.” His voice was soft as he hugged her to him. “Saxa was raised a very strong woman, and part of that means that she feels that woman do not need a man to survive and she feels as if you depend upon him. Give her time, it won’t always be easy, but in time she will come to see what I see.” His fingers ran through his hair, as he heard the door downstairs closing. “Sounds like your dads home.” Leaning he pressed a kiss to the top of her head. “You feel better?”

“Yea.” She pulled away from him brushing away tears knowing that Nasir would worry if he saw them and she didn’t want that. “I’ll be down in a few minutes to help with supper.”

“Don’t worry about it Eva.” Agron offered pressing a kiss to her forehead once more. “I’ve got it tonight; you just get yourself cleaned up and ready to come down.”

Nodding Eva watched as he moved from the bed, offering a comforting smile from the door way before he moved to head downstairs.

“There you are.” Nasir grinned, but his face fell at the look upon Agron’s. “What’s wrong?”

“Saxa and Eva had a fight. She’s alright though, she should be down shortly. What sounds good for supper tonight?”

“How are the girls feeling?” He knew that the two little girls had been suffering with the flu for a couple of days now and he was hoping that they would soon be feeling better, if they weren’t already of course.

“They’ve been asleep most of the day, when they weren’t up sick. Aery curled up in my lap for awhile and watched TV but Lea’s been pretty fussy. She kept saying that I wasn’t daddy, so she slept on the couch till I put her to bed.” They weren’t words that bothered him, she had always been Nasir’s baby girl, and as such he was not surprised when she fussed such as this or whined for Nasir.

“How about I make soup then? Save you and Eva cooking tonight and then tomorrow they can eat if they feel up to it as well.” He would not wake the sleeping girls, if they were awake when it came time to eat, he would more than happily make sure that they ate but If they weren’t, he figured that sleep was what their body needed to start feeling better.

“If you feel up to it, if not then we’ll figure something out.” His eyes turned up at the creaking of the stairs, a smile forming as Eva appeared.

 “Well hello there. I was beginning to fear that you had come down sick as well.” Nasir offered a smile as he looked at the girl. He knew well what had kept her and yet he was trying to play it off as well.

“I feel a little cold but otherwise I don’t feel too bad.” Offering a meek smile Eva sat on the bottom step. “Something I can do to help with dinner?”

“Sure you can curl up on the couch and watch TV, your dad and I can handle it tonight.” Nasir reached out ruffling her hair, which caused her to whimper and duck to get away from his hand. 


	40. Chapter 40

***

“Did you get things worked out with Saxa?” Nasir’s eyes turned up to look Agron from the little boy who was settled in the crib before him, since he had just put him to sleep again.

“I wouldn’t say worked out but she doesn’t like that she’s upset her. So she said she’d talk to her about it when she comes out for her lesson this weekend, I guess we’ll see how that goes.” He sighed rubbing at his eyes for a minute. “Sooooo Aery and I were talking earlier.”  He didn’t know how to tell Nasir what he was about to.

“And?” There was something about Agron’s words that bothered him. The young girl had been struggling as of late when it came to fitting in and the hesitation in his voice told the story that maybe that hadn’t changed.

“Well, she has decided that she wants to dance.” He had always been big on supporting his kids, no matter what they wanted to do but this was new for him.

“Really…” Nasir paused thinking about it. “Well, if that’s what she wants then, I will gladly give it to her. I mean…Eva rides…it’s only….come on Agron say something.”

“Well…honestly, I’m not sure I’m ok with it. I want her to be happy but I’m not ok with my five year old ending up like a mini prostitute.” Agron had never been one to stay quiet about what he felt about one of the kids, and while he would do anything for the kids, he wanted to protect her. “It’s like ice skating and pagents, they’re all a bunch of moms trying to push their kids to be what they never could be.”

Nasir couldn’t help laughing as he watched the other man. “I’m sorry. I’m not laughing at you, I swear. I’m just trying to decide if you or I is supposed to be that mother.”

Agron sighed, rubbing at his eyes; leave it to Nasir to come up with something like this.

“But the real thing here is that she comes from a much better family life then half of them and you know what? I’ve yet to see a ballet dancer that looks like a prostitute. If this is what she wants, then we both know that’s what she’ll get, that is if you’re alright with it.” Nasir reached out touching at his arm. He knew that the young girl had always been Agron’s pride and joy and in that he understood the frustration he felt but he also wanted to please the little girl and he hoped that he would give in.

“Maybe I did over react.” He sighed taking a deep breath. “Alright, if that’s what she wants then that’s what she gets. The way that it’s always been.”

“You’re sure?” Nasir hated to push the issue but he also didn’t want Agron to compromise his beliefs for it either.

“Yea, I’m sure.” It was time to put aside his differences on the idea and do it for her. She was one of the most important things to him and he would do anything to keep her happy.

“I’m sure that she will be happy to hear that.” Nasir knew that he still wasn’t sure about the topic but he was going to put his best foot forward for her. That much was obvious.

Agron nodded softly. ”Come on, let’s go to bed. Something tells me that it’ll be a long night, Eva was up sick when I got off the phone with Saxa. She said that she’s not going to school tomorrow.” He felt bad for the young thing and couldn’t help wondering if the stress had anything to do with her being sick.

“Eva too? My poor little thing.” Nasir would happily care for the child if she so asked, but normally she wouldn’t ask for such because she was worried about bothering them or making things harder on them. “I thought that she looked a little rosy at dinner.”

“I’m sure at some point tomorrow we’ll see Travis. I never thought I’d say this but I think that maybe she’s found who she should spend the rest of her life with, if that’s what she wants.”

Nasir couldn’t help but laugh, he had never thought that he’d hear Agron say them either so it was a surprise to hear them. “They are awfully cute together. Chadara called me the other day just to tell me that they reminded her of you and I when we first met. ” Nasir knew what true love was like, sometimes you got it right the first time and other times it was the eighth or ninth time but eventually it was found when you were looking for it. Taking Agron’s hand within his and leading him across the hall to their bedroom before pulling his jeans off digging through the dresser in search of a pair of sweats.

“Gods, I hope they aren’t having sex on desks.” Agron smirked as he looked at him. He was sure that they weren’t as Eva had expressed such but that was one of the first memories that he had of Nasir.

“I’m pretty sure that isn’t what she was talking about.” Nasir laughed as he pulled on a pair of sweats. “Now are you coming bed with me or not?” He knew that Agron would have his hands full the next day with the kids home sick and he knew that he would need his sleep as well. “You want me to call Duro and let him know I won’t be in tomorrow and then I can help you out here?”

“Only if you want to Nasir, I can handle them if that’s not what you want. If you decide you want to go to work then go, Eva is pretty easy to handle, she takes care of herself and the girls aren’t too bad. Derrick’s going to school, and then there’s little Austen. Otherwise I think I’ll be fine.” Agron was trying his hardest to play it off as if it wouldn’t be as hard as it sounded. After all, Nasir had done it for years; it was something that Agron would learn to do as well. 


	41. Chapter 41

“We’ll talk about it in the morning. You, in bed, now.” Nasir grinned holding his arms out to Agron. He knew that as easy as Agron tried to make it seem, it wasn’t that easy. In fact, it was very tough at times, especially when the kids were sick.

“Alright, Alright.” Crawling into bed beside him beneath the covers, pulling Nasir to him, wrapping his arms around him he laughed. “Better?”

“Always better when you’re here.” Nasir snuggled against the man, burying his face in the other man’s shoulder.

“Little man, I don’t know what to think about you sometimes.” Agron simply shook his head as he looked down at the little man within his arms.

“Sleep Agron.” Nasir knew that there were so many other things that the man wished to do but right now, he needed sleep, and there would be plenty of times for other things later.

“Fine.” Agron grumbled settling in, though he still hung onto Nasir but it wasn’t long before he was drifting off to sleep.

***

“Hey Kiddo.” Nasir was trying to make Eva feel better. He knew that she was pretty miserable and even more so since she didn’t get to go to school that day. Yet he knew that the words that he was about to speak would do little to make her feel better and that made him upset, he wished somehow he could make this easier for her.

“Hey.” She was curled up under her blanket; the normally perfect girl looked a mess compared to what she otherwise would. “I-is something wrong?” While she wasn’t sure, she was used to his behaviorisms after all of these years and he was showing signs of something being different.

“Chadara just called.” He sat on the edge of the bed, his finger tips brushing over her hand. He knew that she wasn’t going to take this news well, not with as much as Travis meant to her and being sick wasn’t going to help.

“Oh?” Her eyebrows furrowed, if Travis was involved, then why hadn’t he called her?

“Yea.” He took a deep breath knowing that he needed to get the words out of his mouth before she started to freak out on him and if that was the case then she wouldn’t hear what he said. “Ev, it’s Travis, he was in an accident, h-he’s in intensive care.”

“W-what?” Eva whimpered, eyes widening as she looked at him, pushing herself from the bed. “N-no….What happened?” This had to be a bad dream; she would wake soon and find herself wrapped within her blankets safe far from this.

“Chadara’s pretty shook up but she said he took a hit at the game and he just didnt get back up.” Carefully he took the girl within his arms. “I know it’s hard but right now you need to start feeling better and not worry about him.” It was something that he knew that the girl was going to have a hard time with this and he didn’t mean to sound harsh about it. “She promised as soon as she knew something she would call, until then there’s nothing we can do.”

Nasir sat quietly watching her for a minute, she didn’t cry, she didn’t scream, in fact she hardly moved. She was still in shock and he couldn’t blame her for that, if it had been Agron he didn’t know what he would do.

Finally though she spoke. “I-I….alright.”

“Do you want me to stay? Would you like me to go?” He didn’t want to over stay his welcome and yet he wasn’t sure that he should leave her alone either.

“I-I…I think I’d like to be alone.” It still hadn’t quite sunk in yet, she felt numb. This couldn’t be happening, and if she was going to cry then she wasn’t going to do it in front of Nasir.

“Alright, we’re here if you need to talk about it alright?” His fingers ran over her cheek. He’d let her deal with this however she needed to but above all else he wanted her to know this.

“Yea.” She nodded offering a weak smile, “I think I’m going to try and get some sleep.” Of course she was having a hard time with this, but she knew her fathers and she didn’t want them to worry more than they already would. She had made it through much worse than this and she would figure out a way to deal with this too.

Leaning down Nasir pressed a kiss to her forehead. He wasn’t dumb, he knew that she was having a hard time dealing and it would be even worse once the shock wore off. “We’ll be downstairs if you need anything.”  Pushing himself from the bed, he slipped from the room. He hated leaving her but maybe what she needed right now was time alone and he would give her that, especially knowing that Derrick was next door and he would keep a close eye on her.

“How’s she doing?” Agron pursed his lips as he watched Nasir move down the stairs, he knew that the answer was probably not well but at the same time he hoped that she would be alright with it.

“She’s not, right now she’s in shock and I can’t blame her really.” A calloused hand rubbed over his eyes. “I don’t know what to think.” He wanted to be able to help, to make her feel better and yet he didn’t know what to do for her. This was tough for him but he could only imagine what it was like for her as well.

“I’ll give her a little time to herself and then I will talk to her. I remember what it was like watching you….” Agron swallowed the words, he couldn’t finish the sentence. He hated to remember what it had been like to watch Nasir lie in that hospital bed not knowing anything. Maybe it would do Eva some good to know that he had been there too and that he knew what she was going through.


	42. Chapter 42

“I hope that it will help, I’m not sure what she’d do if something happens to him though because she’s really head over heels for him.” Nasir sank onto the couch with a sigh. “Why does it have to be our kids.” He grumbled.

Meanwhile upstairs, Derrick had listened to Eva cry long enough. Pushing himself from the bed he moved down the hall into her room before he moved onto the bed wrapping his arms around his big sister.  “Shhhh, it’s ok Eva.” He hated hearing her cry, he hated that she was upset and he hoped that maybe the comfort would help.

“I should have been there.” The words came between sobs; even she knew that there was nothing she could have done even if she had wanted to.

“You couldn’t be, you know that, you’re too sick for that.” Derrick’s voice was gentle as he hugged his sister to him. “You don’t even look like you’ve been out of bed today much less able to go to a football game. Now let’s dry those eyes and get you some soup. We both know that he wouldn’t want you to make yourself sick over him.”

Eva could only offer a nod, in truth she hadn’t felt too bad all day other than the fever that just wouldn’t go away no matter what she did. For that reason alone, she hadn’t left the bed, trying to stay warm hoping that maybe she would beat it that much faster. “O-Ok…” She knew that he was right, Travis would want her to make sure that she was alright and not worry about him but she couldn’t bring herself to doing such a thing. It was tough, she wanted him to be fine, to come prancing through the door to tell her what had happened during the game like he’d promised during the game. Yet she knew that wasn’t going to happen and it only scared her more to not know what had happened.

Reaching over Derrick grabbed a Kleenex holding it out to her. “Come on then.” If he had to, he’d force her to eat, if he had to spoon feed her, himself, he would.

Eva nodded, brushing the tears away with the Kleenex that he had just given to her. Taking a deep breath, she somehow managed to keep herself calm as she looked at him. “How awful do I look?”

“Nah, you’re beautiful like you always are Eva.” His voice was quiet as he brushed the hair out of her face. “Why don’t you come downstairs, I’m sure everyone would love to see you.” He knew that Aerlia and Lea were feeling better and would most likely be running around soon and hoped maybe that would make her feel a little better.

            “I-I guess.” There was no sense in sitting in her room all by herself, all that was going to do was make her dwell on what had happened. At least with people around, she would have other things to think of.

***

“Hey Ev, what are you still doing up?” Agron offered a weak smile as he looked up at the young girl. Derrick, Lea, Aerlia and Austen were already asleep and Nasir had just gone to bed as well. He had thought that Eva had gone to bed as well but here she was standing before him.

“I-I couldn’t sleep.” She sighed sinking to the other end of the couch, she had laid there staring at the ceiling and finally she decided that she would go downstairs and find something to eat but finding Agron she knew that he would wish to see her smile again and he would work as hard as he could at that.

“You’re worried aren’t you?” It wouldn’t be easy for her, that much he knew having been there himself before.

“Yea, I-I cant imagine what Chadara and Donar are going through.” Her eyes dropped to the floor as she spoke, it was true though, if she felt like this, she could only imagine what they were going through.

“Come here.” Agron offered holding his arms out to her. Despite her age, she was always going to be his little girl and he wanted her to know that she was still welcome within them.

She moved to allow him to wrap his arms around her, offering a weak smile as he pulled her close to his chest.

“It is never easy to watch someone you love like that.” Agron sighed. “Believe me, I know that very well.” He and Nasir had talked about telling her what had happened to Nasir when they had been dating and much to his surprise. Nasir had told him if he thought that he could talk about it then he was more than welcome to do so. “Believe me, I know that first hand.”

Eva settled back against his shoulder so that she could look up at him. Her eyebrows rose at the statement, not from speculation but out of curiosity but she didn’t speak waiting for him to break the silence and continue on with his story.

“You know your dad and I have been together for a really long time now. We’ve been through a lot together. You also know that he lost his mother a few years ago.” He sighed, his eyes turning to look at her. “He didn’t deal with it well and….” His words trailed off swallowing hard as he paused.

“He tried to kill himself?” Eva was shocked that wasn’t something that she had expected to hear from him.

“Yea.” The word was simple as he thought about what she had said. “Between your Uncle and I we spent close to two weeks in the hospital with him. The first week of that he was unconscious and the second he was pretty miserable. I wont lie to you and pretend that it’s easy, it’s not. It sucks not knowing anything, wanting to help and yet you’re stuck where you are. I know what you’re going through.” Agron sighed arms tightening around the girl within them. “I talked to Donar a little while ago and he swore to me as soon as you’re feeling better, he will come get you so that you can see him.”


	43. Chapter 43

Eva could only nod. It was tough for her to express emotion in front of people, it had been for years. Growing up it had always been just her, until Nasir and Agron, and as such her reactions were often times stunted. Her hand absentmindedly scratched at Duke’s ear as she thought about what Agron had said.

She couldn’t believe that Nasir had done such a thing, yet she knew that Agron would not lie to her.  It left her very confused and unsure of what to do from here. “S-so now what?” She had so many emotions floating around within that she was having trouble sorting them out.

“Now, you start getting better. Once you shake this fever we’ll decide what to do next. I know it doesn’t help but as soon as they know something Donar or Chadara will call and I’m sure that Crixius will be keeping an eye on him.” In fact, he had already spoken to the man and knew that to be true but there was no need to give her too much to think about at one time. “Go and get some sleep, that’s what your body is going to need right now.”

Eva nodded as she looked up at him, pressing a kiss to his cheek. “Thank you.” The words were hardly above a whisper as she spoke. She was having a hard time thinking that she might sleep but she would try anyways.

“You’re welcome. It is my job after all.” Agron laughed as he let her go. He would do anything to make her feel better and to see her smile, even though he knew how tough that was going to be right now.

Pushing herself from the couch, she snapped her fingers for Duke to follow after her as she headed up the stairs. Crawling into bed, she eventually fell asleep though it wasn’t a peaceful sleep, it was a sleep filled with thoughts of Travis.

***

“Eva.” Saxa’s voice was quiet as she took the girl within her arms. Though she had been concerned about the amount of time that she had been spending with Travis, she had never expected such a thing to happen. Hearing the words as Kai had told her what had gone on. She had Donar almost as long as Agron and her heart broke for her friend, as well as the little girl. “I am sorry.”

“”It isn’t your fault Aunt Saxa.” Though Eva was still a wreck, she was doing better than she had been the night before.

“I should not speak harsh with you.” Saxa felt awful, when she shad spoke to the girl, she had never intended for this. In fact she had not even considered that anything like this could have ever happened. “You are smart little one, never forget as sometimes I do.”

“He’s going to be alright.” Eva bit at her lips trying to make herself believe it. He would be alright; she couldn’t bear to think of it any other way.

***

By Monday Eva was finally feeling herself again and ready to face school. Though it was tougher than she had anticipated, it wasn’t until she was on the way home with Kai, Amelia, Derrick and Brice that she finally broke down.

“I-I cant do this.” The girl stammered burying her face in her hands. She didn’t know what to do. “I can’t even make it through school without nearly breaking down in tears, how in the hell am I supposed to go and see him?”

“Can you deal with not going?” Kai was a good friend but she also had a side in which she would tell you what you wanted to hear.

“I-I don’t know.” Eva sighed. She had debated such through out all of the day while she should have been doing other things but she hadn’t been able to focus.

“Go Eva.” Amelia finally spoke up. “You can do this. You’re strong enough to get through this, together.” She knew what Travis meant to her friend and she meant just as much to him. If anyone could make him feel better then it was likely Eva, even if he wasn’t conscious.

Eva paused a minute, a smile forming on her lips as she looked at her friend. Sometimes she took the girl for granted and she regretted that right now. In this moment though she reached across the backseat setting a hand on the girl’s hand, giving it a light squeeze, she offered a silent thank you.

***

“Trav.” The whimper slipped between the girl’s lips as she looked down at the boy who lay in the bed before her. She felt nuts talking to him, he wasn’t going to talk back, and yet Chadara had insisted. If it would help, she would do it she supposed. “God I missed you today, but I passed my math test.” The words were quiet as she spoke. “And we both know without your help, I wouldn’t have done that.” Falling quiet, the girl ran her fingers over his hand. “You’ve got to come back to us Trav.”

The tears that she had been fighting for so long now began to fall again. “I need you Trav, I-I’ve never said it before but without you, I’m not myself.” Taking a deep breath she tried to figure out what she wanted to say.

“I wasn’t myself before you, I’d given up on finding someone to spend the rest of my life with but you changed that. I don’t care what happens; I want to be with you.” At this point she couldn’t control the tears and she had given up on trying, they were emotions that she hadn’t planed on dealing with just yet.

The girl’s eyes had turned to the floor, unable to speak as the tears fell but her eyes riveted back up as she felt his hand tighten around hers. A gasp slipped between her lips, had she imagined it? A trick played by the mind? No, he had most certainly grabbed at her hand. It was a silent reassurance that she wasn’t alone, and that he wanted the same thing that she did and that was enough for her.


	44. Chapter 44

***

“You look happy.” Agron offered a smile as he looked at the young girl who had just strode through the door; Lea was curled within his lap. Nasir had taken Aerlia for her first dance lesson, much to the young girl’s excitement but Agron had insisted upon staying to make sure that Eva was alright. “Should I take that as there’s good news?”

This wasn’t the reaction that he had expected from the girl. She had just come from the hospital and he had expected tears not smiles.

“Very good news.” Eva sank to the couch, pulling her legs up under herself. “He’s still not awake, but with any hope he’s starting to come out of it.”

Agron knew well that it wasn’t an over night thing, it would be awhile before the boy was himself again but it was going to be a long journey for them both.

“Sissy will you read to me?” Lea’s eyes turned up to look at her sister. She had been bored all afternoon without her sisters to play with and Derrick having a study session with Brice at Gannicus’. It had been just her and Agron and Austen since she’d gotten home from preschool.

“Sure, go get a book.” She offered a smile feeling for the young girl. It certainly couldn’t be easy without anyone to play with all day and she knew that Agron would do everything possible to make things easier for her but nothing could take away the boredom she went through.

            She couldn’t help but laugh as Lea nearly hopped from his lap going to get a book. “While she’s gone, I wanted to show you this.” She pulled her test from the book that was lying on the coffee table, holding it out to him.

            “Your Math test?” Agron asked taking it from her.

            “Uh huh.”

“Great Job Eva.” He was surprised, the girl had been having issues with Math and that had been an on going thing even when Nasir had been working with her. “A B is wonderful!” He knew that Nasir would be just as proud of her as well, especially after everything she had been through in the last little bit.

“It’s passing, that’s all that I’m worried about.” Eva laughed as she looked at him. Grinning as Lea returned with a book curling up beside her sister on the couch. She was beginning to read a little bit on her own but she still insisted on being read to.

After what seemed like a thousand books, Aerlia came giggling through the front door, Nasir following after her shaking his head. “Sometimes I just don’t know about you Aerlia.”

“Baby girl.” Agron grinned pushed himself from the chair scooping her up. “So how was it?” He still wasn’t sure that he liked the idea but if it made her happy then he supposed that was what really mattered in all of this.

“Daddy put me down.” Aerlia was a daddy’s girl she always would be no matter what but she made it very apparent that she didn’t like being picked up and yet Agron still insisted upon it when it came to the little girl. Seeing her bigger sister though she paused a minute trying to decide what to say to her, knowing that she had been having a rough time. “Eva?”

“I can’t save you Aery.” The girl quirked a smile as she looked up at her little sister.

“No.” Aerlia laughed holding her arms out to her sister.

“Oh, of course, you won’t let me hold you but you’ll let your sister.” Agron teased. He could only imagine that she was attempting to hug her sister, she adored Travis almost as much as Eva did but most of all she hated to see her upset.

Setting Aerlia on the floor, he settled back into the chair laughing as Nasir settled into his lap. “Gee, I missed you too.”

The moment she was on the floor though, Aerlia was wrapping her arms around Eva hugging her close. “Feel better soon sissy.”

Eva pulled the girl within her arms. She remembered well cradling the girl within her arms as a baby and yet she had grown up so much over the last few years. “I do feel much better today. How’s Layla doing?” Her eyes turned to Agron as much as the dog had been Agron’s baby, Eva loved the pooch as well and knowing there were pups on the way made her excited.

“She’s doing pretty good. Mad cause I won’t help her up on the bed in the middle of the night.” Agron shook his head. It was true that Layla had always been his baby, from the day that she wandered through the back door and as such he did worry about her. “Sooooo don’t you have something to tell your dad?”

Eva hated being put on the spot like this, but she knew that he was right; she needed to share with Nasir her grade. “Well, you know how I had that test this week?”

“Yea. You’ve been stressing about it for close to two weeks now.” Nasir managed from where Agron had wrapped his arms around him pulling him close to him. “Do I get the feeling that you got your grade today?”

“Yup.” She let go of Aerlia to pick the test up from off the coffee table once more and holding it out to Nasir. Laughing as he pulled against Agron to take it from her.

Nasir’s eyes lit up seeing the grade. “That’s much better then before!” A wide grin spread across his lips as he watched her. “Good Job. Now you see what I meant before, you can do it.”

“Yea, I can.” Eva offered a weak smile knowing that if it hadn’t been for the extra help she probably wouldn’t have done nearly as well.

“So how is Travis doing?” Nasir had noticed the change in her behavior and was hoping that meant good news. Chadara was a good friend of his and he hoped that this was what it meant.


	45. Chapter 45

“He’s doing alright. He’s still not awake but he’s at least coming around.” Offering a weak smile the girl pushed herself from the couch. “I think I’m going to go lay down for a bit before dinner if that’s alright.”

Nasir only offered a nod knowing that she had been through a lot the past few days and he could only imagine that she was exhausted.

***

The weeks passed and gradually things returned to normal. “God I’ve missed this.” Travis grinned sinking to the couch; Chadara had finally let him out of the house again.

“Me too. So your mom and I were talking last night.” Eva’s eyes danced as she looked up at him before they turned to where Layla lay watching the pups play. Duke had been hiding in her room since they’d starting to explore the house. Eva knew that they were old enough now to go to good homes and they wouldn’t let them go to anything else.

“Would this be the surprise that you’ve spoken of?” Travis really didn’t like surprises but he trusted Eva enough to allow her to go through with this.

“It would. She told me that you’ve been looking for a dog and I think maybe we can help. Layla’s little ones need awesome homes and she adores you.” The words were true, despite her dislike for most men other than Agron and Nasir, Layla had taken to Travis and she was sure that she would approve, so she and Chadara had conspired with Agron and Nasir. “So, if you’re interested, we’d like it if you’d take a pup.”

For a minute Travis sat staring at her. He wasn’t sure why he wasn’t surprised by this. He loved the idea of a dog and they had been looking for a pup but this hadn’t been what he was thinking about. “Yea, of course I’m interested.” He knew that the girl beside him would be heart broken if he said no and he couldn’t do that. “Let me guess you’ve already picked one out huh?”

“No, I thought you could.” She offered a small smile as she looked at him before her eyes turned to the floor in front of the couch. “I know that Pits have an awful reputation but look at what an awesome dog Layla’s turned into.”

“A dog is a dog.” Travis shrugged looking at her. “Every breed has its’ issues, and I know that. Look at me beautiful.”

Eva allowed her eyes to turn up to look at him.

“I think it’s a great idea Eva.” He offered a grin before his eyes moved to look over the little ones. “So I guess we should decide which one huh?”

“Come on.” She stood from the couch holding a hand out to him with a small smile. Moving to sit beside Layla she laughed as she laid her head in Eva’s lap.

Travis reached out petting the dog’s head. “Hey girl. You ok with this?” As if in response, her eyes fell shut beginning to fall asleep where she laid with Eva. “So how’s the monster doing with eight little ones running around?” He carefully scooped one of the pups up rubbing at its head.

“He’s not impressed, he’s been hiding out in my room unless there’s food around and then he’s all over the house.” She offered a smile looking at the pup within his hands. “That would be Aries.” A smile played with her lips as she looked down at the tiniest of the males. “He’s the littlest of all of them.” In truth, Eva had fallen in love with the pup and given the choice she would keep him. “The all white one Is Avalanche, she’s pretty hyper. Aztec is the tan beast. Bebe is the black and gray speckled male, Bella is a sweetie, she’s just like Layla.” She stopped to think about which ones she was missing. “Spot is probably pretty easy to figure out, Bronx is the brown and black male and Caramel is the all brown darling.”

“So who would you suggest?” Travis offered a laugh knowing that the girl knew them better than he ever could; after all she’d been helping to look after them since they were born.

“Well that depends on what you’re looking for. If you’re looking for someone to cuddle and love, then Bella, Bronx or Caramel. If you want someone to go running with then I might suggest Avalanche, Aztec or Bebe. Aries and Spot are in between somewhere most of the time.”

“You’re in love with this little guy aren’t you?” Travis laughed as she scooped Aries away from him. The girl had become attached and it wasn’t hard to see that as she cuddled him close to her chest.

“Well…” She sighed as her eyes turned to the floor. “Yea, I guess maybe.” Her voice was quiet, she hadn’t even talked to Nasir and Agron about it, she wanted to keep him and yet she didn’t see that in the future either.

“I couldn’t take him from you then.” He offered a smile eyes looking at her as he did. “Talk to them Eva.” It had become obvious over the time they had been together what her behaviors were and what they meant about her.

“We’ll see.” Eva whispered her fingers rubbing at Aeris’ head.

“Anyways. I think that I’ll take Aztec. He seems like a lover and he’s playful, and you’re right my morning runs are kind of boring so the company would be nice.” He reached out setting a hand on her shoulder. “You really aught to talk to them Eva. I’m sure that they would see room in their world for one more pooch, I mean look at how tiny he is. Of course Duke might not be so impressed if he decides he’s going to sleep on the bed with you but still, talk to them.” His eyes turned to the kitchen where the two men were laughing, as Austen happily babbled away to anyone who would listen.


	46. Chapter 46

“I-I’m not sure that I can” Eva sighed her eyes turning to the dog within her arms. She loved Agron and Nasir but she was sure that they would also probably be against keeping the pup. After all, they had Layla and Duke who were a handful at times.

“Come on Eva, I’ll go with you.” He couldn’t understand, normally Eva was such a vibrant girl, wild at heart and fearless and now she was reclusive and fearful. He couldn’t help feeling like he had done this to her, he had scared her, and she wasn’t dealing with it the way that she should. They were going to have to talk about it eventually but not until she was ready.

“Really?” Biting at her lip the girl nodded, allowing the pup to wriggle from her arms to go play with his brothers and sisters. “Come on then I guess.” She pushed herself from the carpet waiting for him.

Travis moved after her. He knew that she was nervous, reaching out he wrapped an arm around her, pulling her against him, he pressed a playful kiss to her cheek. He was glad to hear her laugh, and hoped that it put her at ease as they stepped into the kitchen.

Agron’s eyes turned up from the little boy who was settled in his lap to peer upon his oldest. Seeing her smile was the best thing possible. “What’s up?”

“Well, there’s something I wanted to talk to you both about.” Pulling out a table chair she sank into it, her lips pressing together as she looked from one to the other. For as calm as she had just felt, she was a little ball of nerves.

Travis leaned against the back of the chair, a hand set on her shoulder, just to remind her that he was there and that nothing was going to happen to her.

“What’s on your mind?” Nasir was a little concerned by her behavior; it was unusual for her to act like this and he didn’t understand what would cause them to behavior like this. He knew that Eva had been having issues even since Travis was home from the hospital, but this wasn’t like her at all.

“Well, I know that we’ve all become kind of attached to Aeris.” It was true, after having to bottle feed him, since his siblings had a habit of pushing him out of the way, they all had a soft spot for the pup. “And I know that there’s been issues with the possibility that he has sight issues, I guess what I’m saying is, can we keep him?”

Nasir allowed a laugh to slip between his lips as he looked at Agron before he allowed his eyes to turn back to Eva. “Forgive me; it’s not right of me to laugh at you. What I meant was your dad and I were talking about this last night. I didn’t figure that you would allow him to go anywhere but Travis’ but I’m seeing that he decided otherwise or else we wouldn’t be having this conversation.”

“And the verdict we came to is, yea we all have a soft spot for the little guy and you’re right, he does wander into things and act like he doesn’t know they’re there.” Agron grinned reaching out to set a hand on top of Eva’s. “And we’ve decided that it cant hurt to take him on, your sisters have pretty much grown up with Layla and even Duke and now it’s time for the same for Austen as well. And you know that Duro just had to have one of his put down so I’m sure that they’ll be interested in one of them. Gannicus has expressed interest in at least one and I’m sure once Amelia sees them, they’ll be taking one plus Travis’. I swear, we’ll find them all great homes and Aeris will be our forever baby.”

“Speaking of did you decide on a pup?” Nasir’s eyes turned up to look at Travis. He knew that they had talked about it and he was curious to see what he had decided on.

“Yea. I think I’m going to take Aztec if that’s ok with you.” Travis bit back the habit of calling him sir. At home that would have been the proper way to finish it but Agron had insisted otherwise. Agron saw no reason for it, he wasn’t his father after all.

“Fine. Just fine.” Agron nodded. “I have the feeling that you’ll take great care of him and that’s all we’re looking for. Well other than you treating Eva like a princess.”

At this Travis couldn’t help but laugh. “Eva is a beautiful human being, both inside and out and she deserves nothing less than to be treated as such. I wouldn’t ever consider less.”

“Enough.” Eva shook her head. “This is not what we were talking about.” The girl hated being the center of attention and they all knew that but every now and then it wasn’t a bad thing to remind her that she was loved.

“Gods does she remind me of you.” Agron shook his head eyes falling upon Nasir, he saw him at a much younger age, annoyed at Agron for boasting about how wonderful he was or how beautiful he was. They still had moments such as this but now he saw it in Eva as well.

“You’re always saying that.” Nasir shook his head playfully as he looked from Agron to Eva who was beginning to blush as she pushed herself from the chair she was sitting in.

“This was fun.” She mumbled before she moved from the room. This was uncomfortable; no matter how many times she sat through it, it was still uncomfortable. Less so then their make out sessions when they didn’t know she was around though she supposed, well that was at least a plus.


	47. Chapter 47

***

“Look how big he’s gotten.” The man smiled upon the little boy settled within Nasir’s arms where he was playing shy. “He looks more and more like Agron every day.”

“He’s a daddy’s boy.” Nasir grinned as he adjusted the little boy on his hip as he settled into the chair across from his own father.

“You used to be as well.”

Nasir couldn’t help laughing as he looked up at him. He remembered much of his childhood but he certainly didn’t remember this part of it. More so he remembered the endless fights between his mother and father, his father moving out and the man disowning him for being gay.

“I know we haven’t always been the closest. We’ve certainly had our differences and I missed out on a lot of your life, much as I did your brother.” The man was confused as Nasir’s eyebrows shot up to meet his eyebrows. “She didn’t tell you did she?”

“I-I have a brother?” It was a question that he was having trouble asking, how had he gone this many years and not known that he had a brother. He didn’t remember growing up with him and his mother had known and didn’t tell him?

“Yea. He’s a few years older than you are, from my first marriage. I-I talked to him the other day and it seems that he didn’t know about you either.” His father sighed as he looked at him. “I know that it’s a lot to take in but he’d like to know if you’d consider seeing him.”

“I need to think about it.” Nasir was still trying to process all of this and it wasn’t working as well as he had hoped it would. “After all, for so many years now, I’ve thought that it was just me and now I find that there is another.” Nasir’s eyes turned to the little boy in his lap, he didn’t know what to say, how to proceed. In fact, he needed to talk it through; he needed to hear Agron tell him that everything was going to be alright.

“Understandable. Just keep it in mind. I know you’ve got to get going to get Aerlia, but I appreciate you stopping in.”

“Thanks Dad.” Nasir offered a smile as he moved from the arm chair he was sitting in, moving to hug the man in front of him. “It’s good to see you again.”

“You’re right, it is good to see you Nasir. Drop in whenever you get the chance.”

“I will.” Nasir was still processing everything that was going on in his head. He had a brother, he really had a brother. Yet he knew nothing about him, hell he hadn’t even thought to ask his name. This was more than he had expected.

***

“You what?” Agron kept blinking as he looked at Nasir, his lips pursing together and eyebrows rising. How could Nasir have a brother and yet he didn’t know about him?

“I have a brother.” Nasir sighed sinking onto the end of the bed, looking up at Agron. “You look just as shocked as I feel; dad sprung it on me today. I want to see him and yet, I guess I can’t help wondering, what if he doesn’t like me? What if I don’t meet what he expects?”

“You’re never going to know if you don’t see him Nasir and can you live with that? Can you live with knowing that he’s out there somewhere and you don’t know him?” Agron sank to the bed, pulling Nasir to him.

“I-I’m not sure.” Nasir sighed settling his head against Agron’s shoulder. “It’s a lot to take in all at once. I mean I’ve always felt like something was missing in my life but it’s been so long, I don’t know him.”

“But you have the chance to know him. If it were Duro, I’d be curious to at least meet him, to know what he’s really like. I mean we might not get along but I’d at least want to meet him once and then if it didn’t work, I wouldn’t have to wonder what it was like to know him.” Agron reached up, fingers running through Nasir’s hair as he tried to soothe his mind. His lips pressed against the top of the smaller man’s head. “Whatever you decide I’ll always be here and so will the kids.”

“Thanks baby.” Nasir playfully pushed him against the bed, the tension in the room forgotten about for the moment. His lips met Agron’s pressing a passionate kiss to them. He was glad that the young ones were tucked away in bed for the night. Pulling away to take a breath, he grinned looking at Agron. “It’s just you and me now, so what should we do?”

“Well, we could lay here and find something on TV and cuddle up together.” Agron playfully offered. He was sure that wasn’t what Nasir had meant but he was waiting on the man to say so.

“You’re right, we could.” Nasir’s lips moved up pulling at Agron’s ear, his teeth raking over the sensitive skin. “Or we could do something else.”

“Ah, ah…..hmmm.” Agron squirmed feeling the warm breath against his ear.

“What’s the matter?” Nasir grinned, his lips moving down his jaw, moving to his neck, knowing that he would soon have the man like putty within his hands.

“You’re sure about this?” Agron knew that his mind was in other places and he only wanted to be sure before they got any further. If he was completely there mentally then he would go ahead but if not, then he would find a way to make him feel better.

“Mmm more than sure.” Nasir’s words were muffled as he nuzzled against his neck. “Please Agron. You promised I would never have to beg.”

“You don’t have to.” Brushing the hair away from his cheek Agron’s lips played at his neck, teeth biting at the flesh below. “I just wanted to be sure that you were sure, that’s all.” Pulling away he pushed at Nasir’s shirt. “Come on off with this.”

“I know that, we don’t really need to give instructions baby.” Nasir grinned as he looked up at him. “Not like it’s our first time or anything.”

Agron allowed a laugh to slip between his lips but it was quickly silenced as Nasir pulled his shirt off, a gasp replacing it. “Gods are you beautiful.” His fingers rubbed across Nasir’s abs. He wanted him to feel special, to know what he meant to him, to make him understand how he felt about him.

A moan rumbled in Nasir’s chest as he arched his back. “Come on don’t tease please.” His voice was weak as he spoke.

“Shhhh.” Agron’s voice was gentle as he ran his hand through Nasir’s hair. “ I know you hate it when I draw things out but tonight will be that kind of night.”

***

“Daddy?” Lea was clinging to her teddy bear standing beside the bed as Nasir cracked an eye to look at her. At some point during the night Agron had rolled away from him letting him out from under his arm.

“What?” His voice was masked by sleep and he wasn’t sure that he made sense.

“I had a bad dream.” It wasn’t like Lea to have this type of issue but he couldn’t help wondering if maybe she wasn’t at that age.

“Come here baby girl.” He sat up holding his arms out for her to crawl into, which she happily did. “You want to stay here with daddy?” It was rare that he would make such an offer without asking Agron first but the terror that shown in the little girl’s eyes bothered him. How could he simply send her back to bed?

Though there were no words spoken the little girl nodded her head, sniffling as she settled in against his shoulder, clutching her teddy bear to her chest.

“Sleep baby girl.” Nasir offered a smile adjusting closer to Agron, allowing the girl to curl up in front of him, wrapping an arm around her and holding her close. “You’re safe with me now; I won’t let anything hurt you.”

Lea settled in eventually falling asleep again, a smile playing at Nasir’s lips as he lay down beside him.

***

A terrified scream shocked Agron from his sleep, only to realize that she was curled within Nasir’s arms. He was trying to calm Lea, quietly talking to her, fingers running through her hair but she shook in his arms.

Carefully Agron wrapped his arms around the pair, used to the way that Nasir’s back felt pressed against his chest and sweet little Lea fit just as well. “It’s ok.” His finger tips ran over the little girl’s back as Lea buried her face against Nasir’s chest. “What’s the matter baby girl? What was the dream about?”

Her tiny little eyes turned up to look at the two of them, tears running down her tanned cheeks. It amazed Agron how much like Nasir she really was, and yet she behaved a lot like the both of them. She was more like Agron though, when it came to emotions she kept them inside so seeing her like this was heartbreaking for both of them.

“You don’t have to tell us if you don’t want to.” Nasir’s fingers carefully brushed away the tears from her cheeks. He wouldn’t push for details even though he didn’t want her to suffer anymore.


	48. Chapter 48

Lea shook her head, before she let it settle in against Nasir again, the tears falling even harder. It was her way of saying that she wasn’t ready to talk about it right now.

“Alright, I understand.” Nasir whispered kissing at the top of her head as he wrapped his arms tighter around her. “You’re alright; I won’t let anything happen to you. Go back to sleep baby girl.” Carefully he rocked the little girl trying to make her feel better. “Shhhh darling.”

Agron settled back against the pillows pulling them with him, he was used to settling in as such with Nasir and Lea was tiny enough that it wasn’t much different. “We’ll both be right here to keep you safe from whatever it is that scared you.” He offered a smile as he looked at her. “Would it make you feel better to settle in between us?”

Still sniffling, the little girl nodded, crawling over Nasir to settle in on the bed between them. She felt safe there, there was nothing more that would help her get to sleep again.

“Sleep well baby girl.” Agron’s finger tips rubbed over her tiny little back as he tried to settle her down. “After all tomorrow will be a busy day at the zoo with your cousins and Alton and Bree.” He knew that the older kids were probably going as well since he knew that Eva had called to ask Travis to come as well.

***

Nearly a week later, Agron sighed as he pressed the phone to his ear. “What’s the matter Saxa?”

“It’s Ganni.” She pressed her lips together. “Agron he’s….god I’ve never seen him like this.”

“Why? What’s going on?” Agron thought that she had seen him in almost every mood and was confused as to what could possibly be going on that she couldn’t handle. He was almost positive that he had heard her crying.

“Little One suggested getting a place to herself and he just kind of flipped out. I don’t know what did it, I think he’s drunk Agron.”

“I’ll be over in a few.” After living with the man for as many years as he had Agron knew well enough how to deal with him but he couldn’t understand what would have possibly set him off though. Why was Sibyl talking about moving out? Had something happened? He wanted to ask her and yet he didn’t want to upset her further. “Just keep him away from the alcohol if you can.”

“Please hurry.”

***

It wasn’t long before Agron was walking in the front door. Saxa had met him at the door and she was a wreck, despite trying to keep herself together.  “The kids are home I take it?”

Saxa only nodded.

Holding his phone out to Saxa he offered a weak smile. “Call Nasir, tell him you’re sending them over. We’ll take them for the night.” He set a hand gently upon her shoulder. “It’s what friends do.”

Saxa offered a nod before she slipped out the front door to make the phone call.

He couldn’t remember the last time he’d seen the Celt like this and for a moment he wished that he had called Duro or Crixus, he might just need their help. “Gannicus?” Agron tried his hardest to keep his voice level, not to allow his fear for him to show.

“Fuck off.” The words slipped between his lips easily as Gannicus turned to look at him. “I don’t interfere when you have issues, do me the same favor.” It was hard to tell if he was drunk or not but Agron didn’t care, dealing with him in this state was the same either way.

“You’re scaring Saxa.”

“They’ve both always deserved better than I can give Agron.”

“Then why the hell are you upset that Sibyl’s leaving?” Agron couldn’t understand. What he was saying and how he was acting didn’t correspond. Some thing just wasn’t adding up or making sense.

“She’s welcome to leave, that’s always been the arrangement.”

“But…?” Agron eyed him knowing that there was more to the story than he was letting on.

“There is no but. She wants to leave, she leaves.”

“But you’re in love. Don’t try and hide it, it’s written all over your face whenever you look at her.” Agron reached out setting a hand on the arm of his friend, not surprised when he pulled away. “And Saxa as well, is that what this is about? That you don’t know who you love more or if you love one more?”

“I said stay out of it.” Gannicus snarled as he turned away, making it even more evident that Agron had hit a nerve. “Just go home, I’ll be fine.”

“I wont leave until I know you’re alright. You’re my friend and above that you’re like my brother. We lived together, talk to me.” Agron’s finger tips ran over his eyes as he tried to decide what to do.

“I just want them to be happy, that’s all.” Gannicus pressed his eyes closed, lips pursing. “They’ve been at each other for about three days now and I just, I can’t put them through this anymore.”

“And so instead of talking to them, you went off the deep end.” Agron offered a smirk as he looked at the other man. “Gannicus, be reasonable about this. Sibyl may be moving out but that doesn’t mean that you can’t still be together. Maybe she just needs her own space. You’ll never know if you don’t talk to her.”

“Agron, I-I never meant it when we started but I fell in love. I wanted Saxa to be happy, and now she’s even more upset then she would have been if I’d just told her no.” Gannicus shook his head, sinking to the couch, allowing his head to sink into his hands. “I love them both, god do I ever.”

“Talk to them Gannicus. We’ll take the kids tonight give you some space and then you can talk about it. If there’s anything we can do please let us know. You’ve taken our kids in as family and they have done the same to you, we want you to be happy too. Saxa and Sibyl may not love one another but they surely do love you” Agron sank to the couch beside his friend. “Now stop worrying or you’ll ruin your girlish figure with worry lines.”

Gannicus couldn’t help but roll his eyes as he looked upon his friend, he was about to sleep when Saxa reappeared holding the phone out to Agron offering a weak smile before she turned to leave. “Saxa…wait…”

“Why? So you can act like you don’t care? So you can pretend like this isn’t killing you? You’d let us both walk out that door Gannicus but where would that leave you? Wake up and feel!” She never turned to look at him, and Agron could only imagine that it was because she was crying again. He felt awkward staying and yet he wasn’t sure if he should leave them alone either.

“I do feel Saxa. This is killing me, but if you leaving is what you want, then go. I want you to be happy, you deserve that, that’s all I wanted for you, ever.” Dark eyes fell upon the woman’s back. He wanted to hold her, to make her feel better and yet for the first time, he didn’t know if that was what she wanted.

Slowly she turned around, cheeks still streaked by tears as she looked at him. “I am happy with you, and I would do anything to see you laugh again, even if that meant you were to ask me to leave. I do not know what to do if you will not talk to me.”

“Saxa, gods no, I don’t want you to leave.” The words were a whisper as he spoke them. “I-I…we need to talk.”

Agron offered a smile pushing himself from the couch. “I’m going to leave and go make sure the kids are settling in alright at home.” He knew that since Saxa and Ganni had adopted Bree, she had not been away from Gannicus and Saxa since they had adopted her over night and he wanted to be sure that she was alright. “I’ll call later?”

Saxa offered a nod. “Gratitude Agron, I do not know where we would be without you.”

***

“Aggy?” The woman’s voice on the other end made Agron smile, she sounded much happier than she had earlier.

“Yea Saxa, what’s up?”

“I was just calling to check in on the young ones. Ganni just left to speak to Sibyl and I guess, I…I needed someone to talk to.” It was the first time that she was honest with herself and that surprised even him.

“He went to see Sibyl?” Agron was confused as he spoke.

“Yea, we talked and I guess I understand. He accepted Little One to make me happy and it is only fair that I do the same for him. If he wishes to see her as well then I should understand that as well.” Though Saxa did not sound completely convinced, he was impressed by the lengths that she would go to in order to make things work.

“You are welcome to come and stay here if you’d like Saxa.” He only wanted her to be comfortable and he couldn’t imagine that with two of them vying for his attention things could get awkward there and he wanted her to be alright.

“Thank you but that won’t be necessary. Little One is going to keep her apartment and we will find way to make it better.”

“And you are comfortable with this Saxa?” If he had been able to see her face, he would have known the answer without asking and yet now he had to ask.

“I-I…” She paused thinking about what it was that she wanted to say. “I want him to be happy. I meant what I said, if that meant that I had to walk away then I would honestly do just that. I would pack my things and leave. It seems that is not the case though, he wishes only that we share and while it is not what I prefer; I will endure for him and to keep young ones from hurt again. They have become attached to Little One.”

Agron knew that she wished to keep the kids from facing the hurt that they had faced when Melitta left and loosing either of the women would put them there once more. “We are always here if you need us. As for how are the kids, they’re well. Kai and Eva stepped in nicely to help out and try and entertain Bree and Nasir just went to tuck her in, in Lea’s room.  And you know the older ones get along just fine so they will all be fine until morning.” He had to admire how the woman had taken the kids in even though they weren’t hers.

“Thank you. We will return favor, promise.” The woman was determined and he could understand that but he also saw no reason for such.

“No need Saxa, there is no reason for it. It’s what friends do. If Gannicus wants to take a couple of days off let me know and I’ll cover for him. Kore’s been asking me to drop the kids off for weeks now.” It was true, ever since the woman had taken on the nanny position for his brother; the woman had been asking him to bring the kids over to play.

“I think we will be fine but thank you Agron. I will come and get Bree in the morning, I can drop her and Lea off at preschool if you’d like.” She saw it as one of the ways to pay him back.

“That sounds fine Saxa.” He offered a smile though he knew that she couldn’t see but the woman had always been so good to him, even before she was part of the family.


	49. Chapter 49

***

“Is she finally asleep?” Agron’s turn up from the book he was reading. He knew that Bree had been having a hard time being away from Saxa and Gannicus and her new surroundings bothered her. Kai had finally crawled in bed with her hoping to quiet her little sister, at least until she was asleep.

“Yea, she should be fine the rest of the night.” Kai offered a weak smile attempting to hide her true emotions.

“Would you like to talk about what you’re thinking about?” The girl was much like her father, quiet and foreboding, yet they would hide all emotion to make others feel better. Gannicus had mastered it over the years, at least so he thought but Agron could see through it, just as he had with Kai now.

“It is nothing.” Kai closed her eyes turning to the floor in front of her. Even if she had wanted to, she didn’t know how to say what she was thinking.

“It has to do with your dad doesn’t it?”

“Do you just wait up for these things or what?” Kai’s eyes turned up to look at him. She wasn’t being rude, she simply wondered it.

“”Kai you’re avoiding the question at hand.”

“So are you but you don’t see me holding that against you.” She offered a cheeky smile as she sank to the couch. It was obvious that she had Gannicus’ sense of wit and would deny that anything was wrong.

“Kai, there is no shame in admitting that you are upset. Though from the sounds of it, Sibyl will remain as part of the family as will Saxa.” He knew that she was attached to the women and couldn’t blame her for such. Each was a wonderful individual in their own way and they were great for her. Yet, if it wasn’t for tonight, they would be happily settled within her own bed with her family that loved her. Yet here she was here while Gannicus attempted to sort out his life.

“Good, I do not think that either of them leaving would be a good thing. Dad is always talking about one of them and that tells me that he loves them both as we do but…..this is like a rollercoaster ride.” Kai’s eyes turned to the floor worrying that Agron might tell her how wrong she was for speaking out against her father. Yet she knew that things had not been easy for Bree and Brice either, and the constant up and down would do them no good.

“Have you told him how you feel?”

“It isn’t my place to speak out against him.” Kai looked flabbergasted at the mere thought alone. “He makes the decisions and that’s what we go with.”

“Kai, your father adores you, I’m sure that if you told him even half of this he would be more than willing to listen to what you had to say.” Agron couldn’t imagine what would make her believe that their home was a dictatorship, that hardly sounded like Gannicus. “Listen, go get Eva, I think we’re headed out.” He offered a smile knowing that the girl could use what he had up his sleeve.

“Tell me you aren’t taking us out for ice cream?”

“Of course not Kai. You’re too old for that trick.” Agron wasn’t lying to her, however he was considering the candy store that Eva loved to go to when she was upset. He swore that Eva had a love affair with jelly beans and he hoped that it would help with Kai as well. It wasn’t dealing with the underlying issues but once she was a little happier, she would be more willing to speak out about it. In truth though, he hoped that it would make her feel more comfortable with them, he knew it was a lot to simply throw her into this and not expect there to be some issues. “Now go and get Eva and we’ll leave.”

“Dad would say that you are attempting to buy me off but what the hell, Eva swears you can be a good time.” For the first time all night, the girl smiled as she looked at him. Agron was amazed at how like Gannicus she really was and yet he saw Saxa in her too.

***

“Hey Tristan, your mom around?” Agron offered a smirk as he looked at the boy who was leaned against the counter. Much like Donar and Chadara, Agron and Nasir had known his parents for years and while they weren’t as close as they had once been, Agron often asked of them.

“Yea. She’s around somewhere, Eva in need of jelly beans again?” The boy cracked a smile as he looked up at him. Before Travis, he had his eyes on Eva but when the affections weren’t reciprocated, he was happy to see her with Travis. However, right now he had an eye on Kai.

“Agron! I thought I heard you.” The thin brunette grinned as she held her arms out to hug him, taking him within his arms without waiting for his reaction.

“Hey Mira, how’s Spartacus?” Taking the woman within his arms, hugging her close to him. She had always been a good friend and he felt bad for neglecting the relationship. While they had not always gotten along with one another, once they had they had become great friends.

“Oh, you know how he is. Working, taking care of the boys and trying not to drive me nuts. How’s Nasir?”

“Working, taking care of the kids.” Agron shrugged offering a smile. “He’s beginning to adjust to being back to work, so that’s helpful.”

“That’s right. You’ve just got the two of them right?” Her eyes drifted over Eva and Kai who were happily wandering attempting to decide what it was that they really wanted.

A laugh slipped between Agron’s lips. “No, we’ve got five of them, including one of my own and one of Nasir’s.”


	50. Chapter 50

“How do you ever keep up with five of them??? Three are more than enough for us. Tristan’s always getting into trouble and once the other two are old enough I’m pretty sure they’ll be following in his footsteps.”

“Got that from their mother I’m sure.” Agron laughed. While she wasn’t always the most even tempered, and she had been known to get herself into her fair share of trouble.

“Mmmm and they’re stubborn just like their dad is, so what brings you in?” Her eyes drifted over the girls and she paused a moment. “One of Eva’s girlfriends?” She had met Agron’s oldest two and she knew that Kai was certainly not one of them.

“Gannicus’ oldest. “

“Gods does she look like him, I should have figured. We need to get everyone back together one of these days. It’s been forever since we’ve seen each other.” Mira shook her head, the last time she could remember they’d all been in college together and she could only imagine where everyone was now.

“Yea, well, I have the feeling you might be seeing him much sooner than that.” He was trying his hardest not to laugh.

“What are you talking about?” She asked turning around, before she burst into laughter watching as her eyes fell upon her oldest son, whom Kai was obviously flirting with. “Should I worry about her?”

“Nah, she’s pretty good. She’s a lot like Gannicus but otherwise she’s a good kid.”

***

“Mmmmm….” Nasir moved to slip into Agron’s arms as he crawled into bed. “What took you so long?” He had figured that it would not be long before Agron was crawling into bed and yet he had never come.

“Mira said to tell you hello.” He knew that the answer would solve the mystery for Nasir. He had intended to tell him that he was leaving but when he had leaned in Nasir lay asleep and he couldn’t bare to wake him.

“Oh? What were you doing there?”

“Taking the girls on a jelly bean spree and trying to sort Kai out. I think she’s doing better now, her and Eva were going to bed, or to gossip about Mira’s son, one of the two.” He shrugged. It didn’t matter to him either way really, as long as they were quiet and kept to her room.

“Uh oh, is love in the air?” He could only imagine how Gannicus would react to hearing that his oldest daughter had fallen for someone, and more interestingly one of Mira and Spartacus’ kids.

“It’s possible.” Agron laughed, kissing at Nasir’s neck. “Get some sleep little man. We don’t need you to get sick on us.” He knew that Nasir had been exhausted lately and he knew that sleep would be good for him.

“We both know that I sleep better when you’re here.” Nasir whispered as he wrapped his arms around Agron, his head coming to rest upon his shoulder again. It was the way that he best slept, knowing that Agron was still beside him after all these years.

“I’m not going anywhere Nasir.” The words were whispered against his earlobe as Agron pressed a kiss to the side of his head.

“I know baby, I know.” Nasir nuzzled against his shoulder, his eyes falling shut as exhaustion finally set in. Soon, his breathing slowed and became more regular as he slipped into a peaceful slumber, with happy dreams of their future and the happy times they’d been through together.

“Sleep well baby.” Agron whispered pressing a kiss to the top of his head, a smile upon his lips as his fingers ran through the ebony locks that fell over his shoulders.

***

“No, she was fine after Kai helped to put her to sleep.” Agron offered a smile as he looked upon Saxa, Bree settled in upon her lap happily. “And speaking of Kai, she’s probably still on a sugar high.” The girl had gone to school already but when she, Eva, Derrick and Brice had left for school that morning, she had seemed in a much better mood than she had the night before.

“Oh gods, tell me she wasn’t any trouble last night?” Saxa had been worried about the kids the night before and had laid up thinking about them worrying.

“No, she was fine. A little upset about everything that is going on but otherwise, she was great. I should warn you though that she’s got her eyes on someone.”

“Oh?” Saxa wouldn’t judge the girl if she was interested in a male or a female, but she was curious as to who it was.

“Mira and Sparty’s oldest.” He grinned as his eyes fell upon the woman he had taken in as his sister, he was sure that she remembered them well, since she’d had her eye on Mira for awhile and he had often wondered if they hadn’t had a roll in the hay. “She insists that we need to all get back together again.”

“Oh, that could be interesting.” The woman laughed at the thought. “How many of us have dated one another for even short time?”

“And yet we all get along so well.” Agron knew that it was strange, but even those who had dated got along alright. “I mean it’s not like I slept with Gannicus or anything.”

“Not that you didn’t want to.” A smile played at Saxa’s lips as she looked at Agron. She knew well enough that he had wanted to sleep with the man but life had conspired against them and Gannicus just hadn’t been interested to begin with.

Agron chuckled while he thought about it. “Oh come now Saxa. Even you wanted to sleep with me, how was I supposed to know that Gannicus wouldn’t be interested.” He shook his head, eyes falling upon the woman. He was teasing of course, she hadn’t known that he was gay when they met through Duro and had come onto him on more than one occasion.


	51. Chapter 51

***

“Lea!” Derrick sighed as he watched the young girl shaking his head. “I should have let dad call uncle Duro.” The words were added under his breath. He knew that his fathers had left with Austen, to meet with someone. He thought that somewhere in the hushed whispers that he had heard Nasir speak of a brother that he was going to meet. Yet, he couldn’t understand how he wouldn’t have known about such a thing until now.

Agron had offered to call his younger brother to keep an eye on the young girls but Derrick had insisted that he would be fine even with Eva out with Travis. What he had forgotten though was that with their fathers away, the girls would surely play and play hard.

“What?” The little girl’s dark eyes turned up to look at him, eyes wide and innocent seeming but Derrick knew better. Only minutes later she had been pulling at Aerlia’s hair causing her to cry.

“Come here Aery.” He held his arms out to the young girl, holding her close as she finally settled in within his arms, tears still falling. “It’s ok.” The words were spoken as a whisper as he cuddled her close. “You made her cry Lea, how would you like it if she pulled your hair? Don’t you think that you should tell her you’re sorry?”

Lea pouted as she looked up at her sister, the truth was that Aerlia had started it though she had been the one to take it to the pulling of her sister’s hair to get what she wanted. “I sorry.” Her eyes turned down to the floor as she spoke them, as if waiting for her punishment.

“It’s ok.” Aerlia sniffled from where she was curled within Derrick’s arms. She knew that he wouldn’t let anything happen to her, much like he would never let anything happen to Lea or Eva or even Austen.

“You want to go play?” His eyes turned to look down at the little girl nestled within his arms. “Or would you like to watch some cartoons and snuggle?” She was Agron’s snuggle buddy normally on Saturday morning and he knew that the girl was probably missing that right now. It was the little time that she would allow Agron to cuddle and coddle her as if she was still his baby girl.

“Cartoons.”

“Alright, we’ll watch cartoons and then you’ll get dressed right?” He knew that Nasir had laid out their clothes before they left and all they had to do was get dressed which they could both do on their own other than a couple of buttons they needed done.

“Ok.” Both girls chorused as Lea came to join them on couch, Derrick wrapping an arm around her as well. There were days that he saw his sisters as a hassle, that dealing with them was tough, and yet there were days like this when he adored the girls and he would rather be with them then anyone else.

“When will daddy be home?” Lea’s eye’s turned up to look at him.

“I’m not sure.” He often had a hard time deciphering which one she was referring to but normally when it was Lea, she wanted Nasir when she called him daddy.

***

“N-Nasir?” The man who stood before him shared his dark complexion, his eyes, and though it was much shorter than his own, the raven locks.

“Yes.” Nasir paused unsure what to say, he was still trying to let all of this set in. A brother, he had always dreamed of such a thing and now the man that stood before him was just that. His brother. “I feel awful, I don’t even know your name.” He hadn’t thought to ask his father when he had agreed to this.

“Carmen. But most refer to me as Peter, my middle name.” He offered a smile setting his hand upon his younger brother’s shoulder. “Don’t worry, I’m just as nervous as you are.”

Nasir couldn’t help but laugh. He had thought as he got out of the car that he had shed the nerves as he had pressed a kiss to Agron’s lips and convinced him he would be fine, that he could leave. Yet now it had hit him twice as hard now that he stood before him. “Forgive me; I don’t know what to say. There’s so much I want to know about you, and I can only imagine the same thing is true of you as well.”

“Dad says that you have kids?” Peter offered a smile attempting to ease the conversation. “That you’ve been happily married to someone?”

“Yea, Agron’s a great guy; we’ve been together now fifteen years, five kids. Eva’s fifteen, Derrick’s twelve, Aerlia’s four, Lea is three and Austen is a year old.” Nasir was having trouble believing that they were as old as they were already. “Eva, Derrick and Aerlia are adopted, Lea is mine and Austen is Agron’s, and you can stop me at any point if you feel like I’m rambling.”

“No, no, actually I was going to ask if you had pictures. I’m still having trouble believing that I’ve had a brother out there that I didn’t know about.”

“Yea, actually I do have pictures.” He offered a smile pulling his wallet from his pocket and holding out the pictures to the other man. “As for not knowing about me, dad and I haven’t always gotten along.” Nasir paused to think about it.

“That’s alright, I never really got to know him either, my mother doesn’t like him much so we never got to be very close to one another, until after her death.”

Nasir’s face dropped as he looked at his brother. “I am sorry to hear of such. My mother also died, it was for the best. So what about you? Wife? Husband? Kids?”

“A wife, expecting our first actually.” Peter’s face lit up at the thought and Nasir remembered the feeling of expecting a child of his own and was glad to know that he too would be able to experience it. “We would be thrilled to have you for dinner one night.”

“Well, if you can stand the kids and the dogs, then we would be glad to have you both tonight. I know that it’s a little sudden and I understand if you already have plans.”

“Oh, no we couldn’t impose upon you like that. You haven’t even discussed it with your…” He paused trying to think of what word to use.

“Husband.” Nasir laughed as he reached out to set a hand upon his shoulder. “We are legally married. And we talked about it this morning; he’s alright with it as long as you are. Besides, no imposition, we’re used to having a couple of extra mouths to feed, the kids are always bringing home friends of theirs.”

“If you’re sure, we’d like that. You’re sure that the kids wont mind?”

“Our kids adapt pretty easily to just about anything that you can throw them into so they’ll be fine. We’d be glad to have you.” Nasir grinned as he looked upon his brother. “But I understand if you do not wish to.”

“No, no, I’d love that.” Uncharacteristically, Peter took Nasir within his arms, holding him close to his chest. “We’d love it, brother.” The word was tough to speak, but he was glad to finally know what it was like.

***

“Oh, my, if she isn’t the spitting image of you.” A smile formed upon Peter’s lips as he looked upon Lea who was playing shy on Nasir’s lap. “She’s beautiful Nasir. I only hope that ours will be just as beautiful.”

“Oh, I’m sure that it will be, there are great genes in your family. Have you found out if you’re expecting a boy or a girl yet?” Agron had settled in, in his chair, Aerlia settled within his lap, having not had anyone to play with since Lea wouldn’t budge from Nasir’s lap. Austen was playing happily upon the floor with his toys while Eva washed the dishes and Derrick dried.

 “I’m glad that we finally found each other.” The words were hard for Nasir to speak but he also knew that he needed to speak them.

“To think, we’ve been living here in the same city all of these years and we hadn’t run into each other.” Peter shook his head, arm curling around Emily as he pulled her close. “I’m glad dad called.”

“Me too.” Nasir hadn’t always been sure about seeing him. Even this morning as he’d stepped out of the car, he hadn’t known if this was the right thing to do or not but now he felt certain about it. He knew his brother not just that he existed, there was so much that they needed to learn about one another and yet for now, he was content with the way that things were.

“Aggy?” The voice from the hallway made Agron jump, but he smiled hearing that it was Duro. “Oh, you have company, sorry, I just thought…I’ll drop by later?”

“No, you’re fine Duro. This is actually my older brother Peter. Peter, this is Agron’s younger brother, Duro.” Nasir offered a smile as he looked from one to the other.

Agron was silently willing Duro not to ask, he would explain to him later how Nasir hadn’t known about a brother.

“It’s nice to meet you.” Duro offered a tiny grin sinking to the floor at his brother’s feet before scooping his nephew up within his arms. “Hey there little guy.”

“It’s nice to meet you as well.” Peter nodded, his eyes drifting over the man taking in all of the details about him. “Nasir and Agron speak of you often, and I can see why, you are almost twins.”

“Hardly, I’m the better looking one.” Agron grinned his eyes falling upon his younger brother, glad for the way that the pair was getting along. Nothing would change the fact that he and Nasir were happy together but he at least wanted the brothers to get along as well and for the time being at least, that seemed to be the case.

“That’s alright because I’m obviously the smarter one, you had to make up for it somehow.” Duro grinned as hugged the little boy to his chest. “So what I stopped to see was if you minded if I kidnapped the boys for a couple of days. Kat took the girls to visit her mom and I can’t stand being home alone, so I figured I’d see if you wanted to give them up for a bit.”  

“Sounds good.” Nasir offered a smile as he looked at Duro. “That is if Agron is alright with it of course.” He had been meaning to spend time with the girls but he always felt like he was leaving Derrick and Austen out and this presented the answer.

“Sounds good to me as well.” Agron nodded before his attentions returned to Peter. “You’re welcome to kidnap the kids when you wish to as well.”

“I think that perhaps it is best to allow them to get used to me first.” The words were easy to speak as his eyes fell upon Lea who was still burying her face in Nasir’s shoulder. “It is a lot for all of us to take in and I wouldn’t rush them before they are ready.”

Nasir offered a nod as he looked down at Lea, offering a smile. “It is alright.” He whispered, fingers rubbing over her back as he looked at her. “Uncle Peter will not hurt you. Honest, I wouldn’t lie to you.”

The little girl only shook her head as she looked up at him, her face returning to his chest and she cuddled closer to him. She didn’t adjust well to strangers but she was the only one who had such issues. He didn’t know what happened but she had always been as such.


	52. Chapter 52

***  
“So what do you think?” Agron’s voice was gentle as he cuddled Nasir close to him. He wished only for the man to be happy and he hoped that was what he was.

“About what?” Nasir offered a smile as he leaned his head against Agron’s shoulder. “You mean about Peter? I think he’s pretty awesome, now I understand how you must feel about Duro. Lea’s reaction worries me but in time, I think she’ll warm up to him.” 

“She’s your daughter, she’ll find her way to deal with the world and you’re right, I’m sure that she’ll warm up to him.” Agron knew that the little girl was temperamental and could fuss better than any of the kids could but he had never seen her play shy with anyone before.

“Anyways, you asked me what I thought about Peter. I think, that it’s a shame that our mothers felt the need to hide us from one another, that we have a lot of time to make up for, but most of all, I have family that knows that I am gay and they accept me for it no questions asked.” Nasir couldn’t imagine ever feeling like this before. If someone had told that his life would have changed this drastically, he wouldn’t have believed it that morning but it was true. 

“Good, I’m glad that you are happy. Gannicus called earlier while you were with Peter, it sounds like things are going better there too.”

“The important thing is that they’re happy.” Nasir meant it, in truth he wanted all of his friends to be just as happy as he was, if that was possible that was.

“Well, you know how Ganni is.” Agron offered a small smile. “He’d say that he was happy just to make sure that someone else was happy.” It was a quality that the man had often admired in the man and he wished that he could do the same, yet there was a tiny part of him that needed to satisfy himself no matter what he was doing.

“Well Eva said that Sibyl was in a good mood when she went for her lesson this afternoon so that’s a start at least.” Nasir cuddled against him closer, sometimes it seemed like he couldn’t get close enough.

“Snuggly tonight I see.” Agron wasn’t used to Nasir acting like this. Normally he hated to snuggle, he would curl up with Agron but not normally like this.

“I just, I don’t know I guess.” Nasir leaned his head against his shoulder. “I just want to be close to you.”

“You know, the girls are asleep, Duro has the boys, it’s just you and me.” Agron pressed his lips against Nasir’s neck.

“Not tonight Agron.” 

“Alright. What’s bothering you Nasir? First you’re overly snuggly, then you turn down sex, do you want to talk about it?” In truth Agron was worried about him, he wanted to make him alright, to know that he was going to be just fine.

“It’s nothing. I guess the stress is just finally catching up to me. Between going back to work, dad’s health, meeting Peter, it’s just a lot to handle and I’ve done ok with it but I think it’s finally catching up to me.” Nasir could be so strong for so long but when he finally broke, he fell harder than most people who dealt with it right away.

“Take it slow. Duro and Ganni will help if you get overwhelmed at work and you’ve met Peter now, you like him so will help with that. When it comes to your dad, you know that I’m here to help and I’m sure that Peter will as well. It’s not as if you’ve all been close all of your lives and I know that you want to spend time with him before…well you can imagine what I mean.” Agron was sure that he didn’t need to spell it out for Nasir to understand what he meant. “What I’m saying is relax. The kids are fine; I’m doing just fine taking care of them so that isn’t an issue. You sound like you need to come home, take a bubble bath, do whatever it is that makes you feel better, just relax. I’ll talk to the kids and make them understand that they need to come to me from now on.”

“No, no, it’s never that.” Nasir shook his head as his eyes fell upon him once more. “I adore them, I wouldn’t ask such a thing, in truth there are times that I enjoy their questions. Like Aery the other morning during breakfast.”  
Agron couldn’t help but laugh as he remembered, rolling himself onto his back, bringing Nasir with him. The tiny girl had been eating before school when she had announced that she was getting married that day. Though Eva and Derrick had attempted to explain to her that she was too young for such, the little girl had insisted. 

Though it had been Agron who had been there when she got home, tears streaking her little cheeks before she disappeared into her own room. Fearing that something had happened to her, Agron had gone to find out why she was so upset. She’d broken the news to him that the boy she was going to marry had told her no and left her. He had tried his hardest not to laugh, not wanting to upset her but somehow he had managed to convince her that she would do just fine later in life. That she wouldn’t die alone like she was convinced that she would. It hadn’t been easy of course but he had managed it still.

“Yes, hopefully that is the last instance of her trying to date until she’s a teen now.” Agron smirked as he pressed his lips to Nasir’s forehead. “Go to sleep baby, I’m here for you, I wont leave you, promise.”

***

“Morning Travis.” Nasir was beginning to get used to the fact that Travis let himself in every morning, enjoyed breakfast and left for school with Eva. Though compared to some of the people that Eva had been interested in, he much preferred the boy.

“Morning. Evs said she wasn’t feeling good? I stopped to see if there was anything that I could do before I went to school.” 

“She’s been up a good portion of the night sick.” Nasir shook his head. “She’s probably curled up in bed, you’re welcome to go see her if you want.”

Travis offered a nod before he moved up the stairs, knocking lightly on the door he waited but there was no answer. “Eva?” His voice was gentle, ears listening attempting to figure out where the girl was. Pushing open the door, he moved into the room, sighing as the girl could be heard in the attached bathroom. Placing a gentle knock on the door he spoke. “It’s me Eva.” Opening the door, he moved to her side carefully gathering up her hair as he knelt beside her, fingers rubbing at her back. “It’s ok, I’m here now.”


	53. Chapter 53

“I must look like hell.” Eva’s voice was quiet, her head was killing her, stomach in knots but his simply being there made her feel better.

“Nah, you’re always beautiful. You feel good enough to go back to bed?”

Eva offered a weak nod before she pushed herself up, leaning against Travis for support. Finally he helped her to settle into the blankets, covering her up, he placed a kiss upon her forehead. “Thanks.”

“No problem. I’m going to go to school and then I’ll be back ok? I’ll bring your homework, if you think of anything else that you need then you know where I am ok?”

Curling up against the pillow she nodded as she looked up at him. “Good Night.”

***

“I’m not really worried about it, Kai’s got it too.” Gannicus shook his head, hand rubbing at his eyes as he dropped into the chair. “So, what’s up with the meeting of the minds?”

“Well, oddly enough this had nothing to do with business.” Duro eyed him as he sat within the chair across from him.

“But yet in a way it does.” Nasir sighed from where he sat within Agron’s arms.

“Has anyone mentioned to you that you sound like a fucking mystery?”

“Not recently Gannicus.” Agron’s lips pressed together in annoyance at the topic.  He knew that Duro was just as irritated as he was and he didn’t know how to breach the subject. “I hear you had issues with Tiberius today?”

“Pompous rich….” Duro cut himself off, falling quiet as Agron through a dirty look in his direction.

“Yea, he was in talking about Eva with his buddies. Katie handled it for the most part until he got up in her face and that’s where I finally stepped in. It was no big thing, you know how he can be.” Gannicus was confused, this wasn’t the first time that it had happened but it was obvious that it had bothered them. “Do you want to tell me what this pow wow is all about?”

“Well, “ Duro sighed, he’d done a lot of thinking lately and he knew that it was time to do something about this, he just couldn’t let what had happened to Isabelle happen again. “His father had issues of his own and I wont let what happened happen to Eva.”

“What are you talking about?” Gannicus was nearly irate now. He didn’t have a clue what any of them were talking about and that was beginning to wear at him.

“Basically, Crassus got away murder because he convinced her to do it herself. Or he harassed her to that point.” Agron’s hand reached out settling upon Duro’s shoulder. “Knowing that one of them can do it, doesn’t make me feel great when it comes to my daughter being involved.”

“So what are you saying?”

“I’m saying that he needs to be taught a lesson and I think that we’re going to have to be the ones that teach it to him.” Duro’s eyes fell upon the man. He had been fighting tears until now, but they had to do this for Eva and for Isabelle.

“How do you intend to pull that off?” How out of the loop in this partnership Gannicus was beginning to feel.

“Well, you see it seems that Kore nannied for the, the….” Duro  found himself cutting off on his own this time.

“And?”

“And she knows the family well. I’m not after Tiberius, I think that Eva can handle that herself but his father on the other hand, that’s another story. Seems he has a thing for his nannies.” Agron continued on as he knew Duro wouldn’t be able to hold it together much longer.

“I’m missing what this has to do with me!” Gannicus sighed, eyes falling upon the three of them. Nasir had remained quiet but it was obvious that he knew something of what they spoke of.

“Well part of this is making the shop Crassus free, that means both of them. It is something that we cannot do without your blessing.” Nasir finally spoke now surprising even Agron, he knew that he hated the thought but for Eva he’d do it.

“You want to save me from hitting the cocky little prick?” Gannicus grinned. “If that’s the case then of course I will gladly accept the offer and probably even consider throwing you a party.”

Perhaps it wasn’t what he had intended but Gannicus had managed to make them all laugh in spite of the tenseness of the situation. It was obvious that they were all in agreement as to where to go from here and that was a relief.

The shuffling of feet turned Agron’s head and he couldn’t help but smile as Eva slipped down the back steps into the kitchen. “Hungry finally?” He knew that she had slept a good portion of the day.

“A little yea. I’m just going to warm up some soup and then I’ll disappear again.” She knew that it was rare to find the four of them lost in such deep conversation and that normally meant that it involved the business and she was probably not meant to be there.

“You’re fine Eva.” Nasir had relaxed against Agron’s shoulder, almost lost within his arms as he spoke. “Travis should be here soon too.” He knew that the boy would be out of school soon and even though Eva was sick it wouldn’t surprise him if Travis appeared.


	54. Chapter 54

It wasn’t long before Eva had slipped back up the stairs to leave them alone once more, though they had insisted several times that she didn’t have to leave.

“You know, I’ve been thinking.” Gannicus leaned back against the chair, hand running through the blonde locks a tops his head.

“A scary thought in itself.” Duro laughed a smirk playing at his lips. “But please continue.” He had taken the man as family many years ago and in that respect he would jibe him now and then.

Gannicus rolled his eyes before he continued. “Agron, do you know how many vacation days you’ve got coming to you.” His eyes turned to look at Duro. “And you, you’re even worse. Do you know what the meaning of vacation is?”

“About as well as you seem to.” Agron laughed. “However, I do need to talk to you guys about something like that. Duro if you’d have Kore call me please, I think I might have a job offer for her, that is if you’re willing to let her go for a week.”

Nasir spun in Agron’s lap, so that he could look at him, confused. “Why? Where are we going?”

“If you plan on actually going away for that long, Kore’s yours, no questions asked.” Duro grinned looking at his brother. Agron hated taking time off, it was nearly unheard of but every now and then he would take Nasir away when he needed it.

“Away Nasir” Agron offered a smile as he eyed him. He wouldn’t tell him right now, perhaps on the plane but not right now. “You need to relax and I’m going to give you the vacation that you truly deserve.”

“Here’s Kore’s number.” Duro grinned holding the number out to his brother. “If you want to and she’s interested, you’re welcome to drop the young ones off with me and then she can take them all on. Like I said though, it’s up to her. If she feels like she can take them all on. Well really it’s just Austen, Faith and Karlee, since the rest of them are in school and by the time they get out I’ll be home.”

“For as many hours as you put in, you might as well have Kore move in with you.” Gannicus shook his head as he eyed Duro. He knew that he was trying to keep the coffee shop going and keep his family together as well. That was one thing he admired about Duro, he would never ask Kat to give up her career or the clinic, he would take the responsibility on himself.

“Where are we going?” Nasir had been mauling this around since Agron had mentioned getting Kore to look after the kids for a week.

“On vacation. You know, the once a year, we need to escape the kids, and destress.” Agron grinned as he looked at Nasir. He wouldn’t tell him no matter how much he begged.

“This is beginning to feel like Déjà vu.” Gannicus shook his head, eyes rolling as he looked at the two of them. “And we’re always willing to help as well. If you want me to take them, I can do that as well. You know Saxa doesn’t mind spending time with Austen, Derrick practically live as our house sometimes as it is and the girls are angels.”

“You cant be talking about our kids.” Nasir shook his head. “This morning Aerlia tried to tie Aries to Duke. Duke was no impressed in the least bit Layla was having a fit and Aries, well he was just going to go with it. Those are the angels that you speak of.”

“Oh that’s nothing.” Duro shook his head. “Sweet little Anne got sent home from school the other day. Seems she punched a kid in her class, Kat was not impressed to hear that at all.”

“Got a little German in her after all.” Agron grinned. The girl had always acted more like Kat but he had known Duro to get into a fist fight or two over the years. “You teach her that?”

“Nope. Pretty sure that came from her mother.” Duro laughed. “Now go and call Kore. Get your plans set up for your vacation, you deserve it.”

 


End file.
